Back To The Basement
by Atramea
Summary: [Multichap HALEB - Set after 5x05] After Caleb had moved to Ravenswood, Hanna had tried to move on, but now he's back. What if Caleb finds himself living in Hanna's basement once again? Will their feelings come back to the surface?
1. Chapter 1

Hanna was slowly walking through the cold streets of Rosewood. It was night and she was coming home.

The day before, there had been the explosion at Toby's house. She was freaking out about -A coming back, but she was upset also (and maybe most of all) because Caleb was back.

She was with Travis. She was trying to move on. She couldn't know that Caleb would have been back. But he was. And now, she just didn't know how to handle it.

But she came back to herself when she saw right Caleb sitting on a bus bench. He was wrapped in his coat and was staring at the ground. There wasn't any bus anymore, it was late. What was he doing there? It was freezing and it looked like it would have started raining soon.

She approached him and he finally lifted his head, noticing her presence.

"Caleb... What are you doing here?" she asked.

Caleb sighed and shook his head.

"Hey... Nothing, I just... I'm waiting for a friend." he replied.

But Hanna knew when he was lying. And he definitely was now.

"You don't have many friends here... Toby is out of town and he's not coming back tonight, so it can't be him. Maybe Lucas? I don't even know if you two still talk to each other by now." she said, wanting to lead him to the truth.

Caleb didn't answer. He just pushed his lips one on the other.

Everytime he saw Hanna he thought about what he had missed. What he couldn't have anymore. What he had lost. And he thought that not only she was no longer his girl, but she also was someone else's girl. Travis was nice and everything but, dammit, that was _his_ Hanna. But he had let her go. And he couldn't blame anybody but himself for it.

"Caleb... We both know you're not waiting anybody. What are you doing here?" Hanna asked again.

"That's none of your business. We're no longer together, am I wrong?" he snapped.

Hanna froze at his words. They hurt her like hell. She felt a pain in her chest, right into her heart. Caleb looked up at her and noticed tears forming in her eyes. He immediately cursed himself for his toughness. Of course he still hated seeing her that way. Plus she was right. She was perfectly right.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." he sighed, roaming a hand through his hair.

Hanna sighed and bited her lip.

"Never mind. I should have minded my own business, you're probably right." she added.

Caleb took a deep breath and looked up at her again.

"I'm not meeting anyone. I'm just getting ready for the night." he said.

Hanna widened her eyes in shock.

"Are you gonna sleep here?" she asked.

Caleb shrugged.

"It's not like I haven't spent the night on a bench before." he whispered then.

"But why would you stay here?"

"Toby's house is destroyed, remember? I was staying there, but now... " he explained.

Hanna bited her lip and nodded.

"Caleb, you can't sleep here, though." she said then.

"Well, it will be just for tonight, I guess."

"Then where are you gonna stay?"

"I'm planning on going to Montecito soon. And I think it will be for good. I came back here in Rosewood for a reason, but my presence here actually doesn't make sense now that... Well... I'm just taking the next bus tomorrow morning." he stammered.

Hanna knew what was the reason why he had come back. It was her. But he had also found out about Travis, that's why he wanted to go to his parents in California. If he couldn't be with her, then he preferred to go far away from her. It made sense.

She didn't know what to say. She just looked at him wrapped tight in his coat, suffering the cold. His nose was red, he was slightly trembling even if he was trying his best not to show how much he was cold.

"I just... I thought you were staying here a little longer." she finally said.

Caleb shrugged.

"Why should I? I neither have a place where I can crash now. Plus, I don't have anyone here... Anymore." he replied.

Hanna sighed at his words. She just wished he could have stayed. His presence still made her feel safe, or at least safer. The previous night, she felt better even just when he had held her hand, or when there was the explosion and he had managed to wrap his arms around her protectively.

Yeah, she still felt him like her guardian angel.

"Look, I wish you didn't leave tomorrow, but I'm no one to ask you to stay, especially..." she started but then she didn't know how to continue.

Caleb just gave her a small nod, before returning to look to the ground. But Hanna had to finish, so she continued.

"Anyway, I'm not gonna let you sleep here, Caleb. It's freaking cold and you're trembling, and... I don't get why you should sleep on a bench. You can come to my place."

Caleb looked up at her and laughed.

"Hanna, do you realize the absurdity of what you've just said?" he added, shaking his head.

"That's not absurd. It's just for tonight. Yeah, I'm obviously not gonna tell my mom, but... You know, there's still _your_ couch in the basement." she replied, letting out a small smile at the end of her statement.

Caleb couldn't hold back a little smile as well, but then he immediately cleared his throat and lowered again his gaze.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Hanna." he said without meeting her eyes.

"Look, Caleb... Can you just put aside our things for one night? You need a place to stay right now. Don't act pride and just come with me. You know I don't change my mind so easily."

Caleb sighed again.

"I just..." he started, but Hanna just offered her hand to him.

"Please. I won't move from here until you give in. There's no way that you're sleeping here tonight."

Caleb raised his eyebrows and took her hand, standing on his feet.

"You shouldn't do this for me. You should hate me." he said then, looking into her eyes.

"I could never hate you. Caleb, whatever happens, you can always count on me. I will never turn my back at you." she smiled shyly.

Caleb nodded and let go of her hand.

"Thanks." he just said, as the two started walking in an awkward silence towards Hanna's house.

* * *

Hanna entered in silence in her house. Caleb was hesitant to get in, but Hanna turned to him and gesturing for him to come.

"My mom's still out. There's no one." she assured him.

Then, Caleb got in and gave a look at those familiar walls. It was like an homecoming. Hanna's house smelt good. More specifical, of floor detergent, the one which was a mix between lemon and lavender and that Ashley had always liked to use. It was that smell and Caleb could perfectly recognize it.

"Have you eaten?" Hanna asked.

Caleb closed the door behind his back and took some steps.

"I'm fine, I had a sandwich at the Brew. Thanks." he replied.

Hanna nodded awkwardly.

"Something to drink?" she asked again.

He simply shook his head.

"Can I just use the bathroom so I can go to sleep?" he asked back.

"Sure. My mom will probably be back in half an hour, so... You have time." she replied, smiling.

He nodded and made his way to the bathroom with his backpack still on his right shoulder, as Hanna leaned by the kitchen counter.

She was glad she had been able to convince him to come over, but it felt all so awkward. He was in Rosewood for her, and now that he had learnt that she had someone else, he wanted to leave. She was hoping he would have changed his mind. It might felt awkward having him around now, but it felt good at the same. Hanna was willing to let him stay there for all the time he needed to if he was going to stay in Rosewood. Despite Travis or anybody and anything else, she wanted him there for her. Maybe it was selfish, but that's how she felt. She had missed too much and now he was back and she didn't wanna lose him again.

Never again.

Caleb reappeared in the kitchen taking her back to reality.

"I'm done. I think I'm going downstairs." he said, giving her a small smile.

"Fine. If you need anything, just give me a ring." she smiled.

"Thank you, Hanna. Goodnight." he said, before walking to the door which leaded to the basement.

"Caleb, wait." she called, turning to him.

He looked at her waiting for her to speak, so she did.

"Look, it might sounds selfish, but I really wish you stayed in Rosewood. Yesterday, with all that happened, I didn't even have the chance to thank you. You were there for me, it was a tough moment and you were there for me. It's nice to have you back here and... I hope you won't leave this time."

Caleb gave her another small smile.

"Hanna, as I know that I can count on you and that you will never turn my back at me, you should know that it's the same for me. You're the reason I'm back here in the first place." he replied.

"So you're gonna stay?"

Caleb sighed.

"I don't know... I don't know if I can bear... The current situation." he replied quicky, pursing his lips.

"I get it. Promise me you're gonna think about it, though. If you decide to stay, I'll be happy. I have absolutely no right to claim you here for me, but I wanted you to know this."

"I'll think about it." he nodded, still smiling.

Hanna smiled back.

The two remained to watch each other for an undefinied time. The one was studying the features which had so much missed of the other. Caleb was focused on her deep blue eyes, on her creamy skin, her way to play with her hair when she was nervous. Hanna studied his new stubble, his new haircut, his same chocolate orbs. He looked good, maybe even more than once, she thought, blushing at her own thoughts, as he simply thought that she looked beautiful as always.

"Well, it's time for me to go. My couch is waiting for me. I bet it missed me." he joked, breaking their comfortable silence.

"I missed you too." Hanna blurted out, without thinking.

Caleb's mouth opened slightly at her words, as Hanna was silently cursed herself for her impulsivity. She bited her lip and sighed.

"Goodnight." Caleb whispered with a shy smile, before opening the door to the basement.

Hanna stuttered a goodnight back and watched as he closed the door behind his back. She let out a deep sigh and a small smile.

If he wasn't going to leave, it was gonna be nice having him back there. That was _his_ home.

* * *

Caleb entered the basement and placed his backpack on the floor. He couldn't help but smile at the sight of those familiar walls. His couch was still there. Maybe the whole room was dustier than the last time he had checked, but it still was the basement of the Marin's house. He quickly got rid of his clothes and dropped himself on the couch with just his boxers, covering himself with the comforter it was placed there.

Everything looked the same of once.

Except for the fact that Hanna was no longer _his_.

He was happy to be there, but it also hurt him. He wanted to stay, to protect her, but the thought that she had a boyfriend who wasn't him, made him feel sick. He had promised to think about it, so he was thinking.

Hanna had told him to stay. Despite Travis, she wanted him there. And he couldn't remain indifferent to this awareness. He had left her when she needed him, but now he was back, and she still seemed to need him. He really didn't know if hiding in her basement once again being now his ex-boyfriend was a good idea, but he knew that she needed his closure.

He might could have searched for another place to stay later, if it would have become too weird or uncomfortable for him to stay there given the circumstances, but in that moment Caleb decided to stay in Rosewood. Because Hanna needed him. And he wasn't going to leave her again. He had already left her once and it was still the biggest mistake of his life. He wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

* * *

**A/N: And here's my new story :) Thank you to the guest who suggested me this ;) So... You guys have to know a few things about this fic... It's set after 5x05. All that happened later, just forget about it. Then, let's pretend that Caleb was staying right in Toby's house and not in the cabin, so, after the explosion, he finds himself with nowhere to go. Well, I'm sorry to bring Travis up once again, haha :D But I want to make soooo much drama and if Hanna and Caleb were already back together when he moves in her basement, it wouldn't be so funny, right? ;) I think I'm also gonna upload "Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen" later. Don't worry, I'll keep up all my current stories :) Hope you guys are gonna enjoy this as well and let me know what do you think reviewing :) Love! xx -Atramea.**


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Hanna got out of bed and went downstairs to have breakfast. Her mom was already there.

"Hey, Han. I have to go. Be careful and don't be late for school." she quickly said, grabbing her coat.

"Don't worry, mom. See you later." Hanna replied with a smile.

"Bye, love you."

"Hey, mom!"

"Yeah?"

"What time are you coming back home?"

"Dinner time, as always. Why?"

Hanna shook her head.

"Nothing. Have a nice day." she added.

"Hopefully... See you later!" Ashley said before getting out and closing the door behind her back.

Once she was gone, Hanna smiled and walked to the basement door, knocking twice. Caleb entered the kitchen after a few seconds, dressed in a simple t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

"Good morning." Caleb smiled.

"Hey... How did you sleep?"

"Good."

"What do you want for breakfast?"

Caleb sat at the table and looked up at her.

"Don't worry about me... You're gonna be late for school." he said.

"Now you're the one who's worrying about me." Hanna smirked.

Caleb shook his head and then poured a bowl with milk, as Hanna stared at him.

"So... Have you thought about staying?" she shyly asked.

Caleb glanced at her.

"Yeah, I've thought about it." he replied.

Hanna raised an eyebrow asking for a real answer. Caleb took a deep breath and then spoke.

"If there's something I can do to help you guys, I want to do it."

Hanna sat next to him and gave him a small smile.

"Is that a 'yes'?" she asked.

Caleb chuckled.

"Yeah." he nodded.

Hanna smiled even more.

"I'm glad." she admitted.

Caleb smiled back and then again, anyone of them knew what to say or do next. They locked eyes for a few seconds, and Hanna couldn't help but give a quick look to his lips as well.

"But as soon as I'll find another place to stay, I'll move out." Caleb then blurted out, after having cleared his throat.

"Caleb, you can stay here as long as you need to." Hanna replied.

"No, Hanna. Ashley will find out sooner or later. Plus, we both know that this isn't a really good idea. It's not like I'm a friend of yours who just needs help. You have a boyfriend and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be really happy that his girlfriend's ex is living right in her house."

"That's my business, this is my life and I'm gonna decide what to do or not to do. And I'd be happy if you stay here. We could just not tell anyone that you're crashing here, though."

Caleb sighed and looked away from her.

"We can't just live together like we're random roommates, Han. Don't you get it?" he whispered, still with his gaze away from her.

Hanna bited her lower lip and looked down. Maybe he was right. Maybe this was like a torture to him. And she hadn't thought about it, about how he was feeling. Being so close to her nevertheless so far.

"Well... I can't force you to stay here if you don't want to... Or worse if it hurts you. But... You know that this is still your house. You're always welcome in here." she said softly, still looking at the floor.

Caleb turned to her and gave her a small nod.

"Anyway, I'm gonna stay here at least for now." he said.

Hanna looked up at him and made a small smile.

"I'm just sorry that I can't give you the guest room." she added, trying to lighten the mood.

Caleb chuckled.

"I'm fine with my couch, don't worry." he added.

Hanna took a sip of her orange juice as Caleb poured the cornflakes in his milk.

"Does Ashley know that I'm back in town?" Caleb asked casually.

"Yeah, I told her."

"I guess she wants to kill me."

"Oh no, not at all." Hanna replied.

Caleb looked at her.

"She doesn't like Travis. Or better, she doesn't like him with me. She keeps telling me that..." Hanna said, but then she blocked herself.

Caleb blinked and Hanna caught herself watching the way his long eyelashes move, making her feel something at the stomach. But then, she managed to continue.

"That I shouldn't stay with him if I'm still into someone else. She says that he doesn't make me happy like you used to. She still hopes that you and I can find each other, despite everything."

Caleb pursed his lips and sighed deeply, lowering his gaze. Hanna lowered her gaze as well, not able to say anything else.

"Go get ready or you'll be late for school." Caleb murmured then, still looking at the floor.

"You're not coming?" Hanna replied.

Caleb shook his head.

"I still have to talk with the principal and see when I can do the make up tests for the classes I've missed these weeks. Then, maybe, I'll be back." he added.

Hanna nodded and made her way upstairs, leaving Caleb with his breakfast.

When she returned downstairs, she smiled at the sight of Caleb washing the dishes.

"Hey, uhm... I'm going. I'll see you later." she said, leaning by the kitchen doorway.

Caleb turned to her and nodded.

"Hanna, just... Please be careful, okay?" he added.

Hanna smiled slightly.

"I will. Bye." she replied.

"Bye."

* * *

Hanna decided not to tell anyone about Caleb crashing in her basement. She knew no one would have found her idea a good one, at all, and she didn't want to listen people tell her she was wrong. She was sick of it.

She didn't tell her friends, and obviously Travis either. He was so kind and sweet with her, and she truly liked hanging around with him, but she couldn't lie to herself: she didn't love him. She had never gotten over Caleb, and something made her think that Travis was aware of that, even though he didn't ask anything. Probably, Travis didn't even know that Caleb was back, though.

"Hey." he smiled at her when he met her through the hallway.

Hanna smiled back, as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and walked with her to her locker.

"I was wondering if we can catch up after school..." he said, as Hanna pulled her books out of her locker.

"I'm sorry but I need to study. I've a Math exam on my way."

Hanna didn't have any exam. She just didn't really want to go out with Travis knowing Caleb was going to be alone in her basement all day long.

"Okay, well... Maybe tonight?" Travis shrugged then.

"I'll let you know." Hanna replied, before walking away.

* * *

In the meanwhile, Caleb decided to study something to get ready to his imminent make up tests. He thought to go to Hanna's room, just to take the Spanish book. He didn't mean to invade her privacy, he just wanted to get in and grab the book from her bookshelf. He almost felt guilty to do it, though. So, he decided to text Hanna to ask her if he could borrow her book. Funny that their first text after everything that happened was about a stupid Spanish book.

_Hey, can I borrow your Spanish book to study?_

He typed simply, and then he sent.

_Sure, it's in my bedroom. Same place as always._

_Thank you :)_

He felt an idiot because he never used emoticons. But he had never been able to avoid them when it was Hanna. It came up to him naturally.

Only after her permission, Caleb got in Hanna's bedroom.

He felt like a lump forming into his stomach.

That view brought him a lot of memories.

He could smell Hanna's vanilla scent in the air. Everything looked the same, like the basement. Their pictures were still all around her room. It was cute that she had never put them away. There was also a little teddy bear on her bed, the one which he had given her after winning it in a game at the amusement park one night. The fact that she had kept everything related to him despite what had happened made his heart melt. Caleb smiled giving a quick look at everything. And then, his eyes lied on her bed. He could perfectly remember the smell of its sheets and most of all how it was nice to sleep there with Hanna when Ashley was away.

Caleb just thought that was crazy that everything _looked_ the same but it _wasn't_ the same. But then again, he was the one who had messed everything up.

He shook his head and grabbed the book, then he got out of her room.

When he got back in the basement, he opened Hanna's Spanish book. After fifteen minutes of reading, he arrived on a page where there was his name written all over the paper, along with little hearts.

God, it was hard to be back and see all these things. It was like being back home but not actually being there.

Like if you can see your house from outside but can't get in.

Because the door is locked.

And you're the one who threw the key away.

* * *

"Caleb?" Hanna called as she got in her house.

"Hey." Caleb's muffled voice replied from downstairs.

Hanna opened the basement door and made her way downstairs, where she found Caleb studying on the couch with her Spanish book. He gave her a small smile and put the book down.

"You're already home?" he asked.

"Yeah. I didn't have anything better to do." she lied, shrugging.

Actually, she just wanted to be home... With him.

When she had received his text earlier, she had felt adrenaline rushing through her veins, even if was just to ask for a book. She had definitely missed even Caleb's name showing on her display.

"So you really don't have anything to do?" Caleb asked.

Hanna swallowed. What was he thinking? What did that question mean?

"Uh... No." she replied then.

"Do you mind helping me with this stupid Spanish? I suck with verbs!" he whined.

He knew Hanna was good with foreign languages, so she might could have helped him. He had always helped her with Math and Chemistry while she had always helped him with Spanish and French. They had been like a team. Even for studying.

Hanna chuckled slightly.

"Sure." she replied, sitting next to him on the couch.

And then, Hanna and Caleb spent the whole afternoon studying Spanish. Hanna could have been with Travis, instead she was with Caleb. And she felt in the exact place where she had to be.

That was until her phone beeped on the couch. It was a text from Travis.

_Hey! So r we still up for tonight? :)_

She had completely forgotten about it. She sighed deeply, and Caleb gave her a confused look.

"Hey, is everything okay? Is that -A?" he asked concerned.

"No, it's just Travis." she replied, not even knowing why she had told him who it was and most of all that was right Travis.

Caleb raised his eyebrows and looked away.

"You know, it's almost dinner time, your mom is probably on her way home... You should go upstairs before she comes back." he said then.

Hanna just nodded.

"I'll bring you something for dinner first, though." she said, getting up from the couch.

"Actually I'm not really hungry. I think I'll just stay here and keep studying."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry."

Hanna nodded again and made her way to the door.

"Caleb... If you need anything..." she started.

"...I'll let you know." he finished for her, avoiding eye contact.

Hanna looked at him and saw him distant. She opened the door and went back upstairs, sighing.

* * *

**A/N: I know, nothing big happened in this chapter, but we're still just at the beginning... I promise some serious drama in the future :) Also... I'm back to college, this means that my updates may be later than usual, but I'll manage to publish as soon as the chapter is ready :) Thank you everyone for these first ten reviews! It means a lot to me, seriously! You guys are always here supporting me... I hope that my new stories aren't disappointing you ;) I love the plot of this story, Caleb back to the basement is such a great thing to write about, so thanks again to the guest who suggested me this! I've got some ideas for this story and I can't wait to share them with you all :D So, since I love hearing from you, leave a review and let me know if you liked this second chapter :) Love you guys, till the next time! xx -Atramea.**


	3. Chapter 3

Hanna spent her night out with Travis. She was distant, though. She thought about Caleb the whole time. She just couldn't help it.

Travis had always been nice and everything with her, but someway she found him childish. They had all trivial topics in their conversations, and not to mention, Travis had never tried to go a little 'further' with Hanna... He had never showed any interest in sex. Well, Hanna was glad about it since she absolutely didn't feel to make love to him, at all, but he had never even made a move. He just took her out for dinner, told her sweet words, then grabbed her by the hand, took her home and kissed her goodbye. And, not to be mean, but his kisses weren't passionate at all. They were all too much sloppy and wet, and Hanna was almost bothered by them, so she was very glad when he opted for a quick peck.

Caleb's kisses, God, those were kisses.

But she really wanted to give Travis a chance. Because it was more than clear that he truly and genuinely cared about her. She was grateful to him for everything he had done for her. Because he was always willing to be there when she needed a support, when she wasn't okay _and_ even when Caleb wasn't there. Because Caleb hadn't been there for her when she was dealing with Ali's return, when she had faced a deep identity crisis, when she had restarted shoplifting and everything else. She had been into a storm. And Caleb no, he wasn't there. Because he had left her probably in the most difficult moment of her life. Instead, there had been Travis with her.

She felt like she couldn't completely trust Caleb anymore. Well, it was clear that she still felt something for him, something very strong, without a doubt much stronger than what she felt for Travis, otherwise she wouldn't have offered him her basement once again, but she just wasn't ready to end her thing with Travis to come back with him. What if then he would have left once again? What if a morning she woke up and found Caleb gone? She was scared that it could have happened again. And no, she couldn't risk to be through it anymore. She still didn't know how she had been able to get over it, so she was sure that she couldn't have gotten over it if it would have happened a second time.

There was Travis, a guy maybe not very passionate but surely nice and kind, and Hanna knew that he wouldn't have walked away. But she couldn't be sure that Caleb wouldn't have walked away again. So, she had decided to keep things the way they were.

* * *

When Travis took her home and luckily said her goodbye with just a quick peck, it was late enough to make sure that her mother was already sound asleep in her bedroom, but not late enough to make her think that Caleb was already asleep. So, when she got in, she decided to go downstairs to see Caleb before going to sleep. She placed her purse on the table and walked to the basement, paying attention not to be loud not to wake her mom. She knocked on his door twice, and Caleb voice allowed her to come in.

"Hey." she smiled at him as she closed the door behind her back.

Only then, she realized that he was wearing a pair of shorts and nothing else.

"Hey." he replied, looking up his -her- Spanish book.

"Everything okay with Spanish?"

Caleb nodded his head from side to side.

"More or less." he shrugged.

Hanna smiled and started to play with one of her locks. Caleb could tell that she was nervous. He moved his body a little and made some room on the couch.

"Sit down." he smiled.

Hanna accepted his offer and sat next to him on the couch, as he placed the book on the floor.

"How did your date go?" he asked casually.

"Fine." Hanna replied quickly, biting her lip.

"Travis is a nice guy. I'm pretty sure that he treats you well."

"Yeah, he does."

Caleb nodded slowly, wiping the palms of his hands against his covered thighs.

"Anything from -A?" he asked again.

Hanna shook her head.

"No, not since the explosion. We don't know what to think anymore..." she sighed.

Caleb sighed as well, then, without thinking, he just grabbed her hand and rubbed the back of it with his thumb. It was so natural to him.

"Hey, I'll do anything to stop him, her, it or whatever it is. I promise. Even if it's the last thing I'll do in my life... We'll make it, okay?" he whispered, squeezing her hand.

Hanna felt sparkles running through her veins right from the point where their hands were joined. She had missed him like hell, and she could feel all the passion even just with him squeezing her hand. Passion that she hadn't felt in a quite long time.

She looked up at him slowly, trying hard not to stop her gaze on his bare chest, and then she met his eyes. She nodded slightly, pushing her lips one on the other. Caleb nodded in return, still holding her hand.

"Thank you." Hanna managed to whisper then.

"For what?"

"For being here... Now. For not leaving even if... You know... You wouldn't owe me anything, but you're here, and... I just want you to know that I really appreciate this."

"I wouldn't owe you anything? I'd owe you the whole world, Hanna." he replied with a chuckle, still gently rubbing her soft hand.

Hanna chuckled and shook her head.

"Seriously, I'm here because I care about you. I know that things are not the way they were before, but... You're important to me and nothing can ever change this. You know, I made you a promise that night in Ravenswood... That when I was done, I would have come back to you. I did what I had promised, not only to you but also to me. I did it late, though... Anyway, I still feel the need to protect you. I want to protect you, so I'll stay." he continued.

Hanna inhaled and then breathed out deeply, staring at his eyes. His voice was soft and calm, his hand was still holding hers, and Hanna was sure he was totally honest. He was speaking with his heart. Hanna knew that heart.

"Well, I feel safer when you're around." she said shyly.

Caleb gave her a small smile.

"I'm sorry for what happened." he said then, bitterly.

Hanna's heart broke just at the thought of those horrible days without him.

"I know I've been a jerk and everything, but... I'm sorry. Really sorry. I just want you to know that I really am." he continued.

"I know." Hanna nodded.

She still didn't know what exactly had happened in Ravenswood, but she didn't wanna ask him right now. She just looked down at their joined hands, following with the gaze the gentle movements of Caleb's thumb on her hand.

"And thank you for not hating me. Even if I'd totally deserve it." he said then.

"Don't talk like this. You're one of the most beautiful people I've ever met, Caleb. Just because we broke up, it doesn't mean that I hate you. I know who you are and I can just be happy that you're back here now."

Caleb smiled at her and then lifted their joined hands to leave a gentle kiss on her knuckles.

"Travis is the luckiest guy in the world having you. He should never let you go like I have." he whispered, deeply looking in her eyes.

Hanna could feel her heart pushing very hard against her chest as she locked eyes with Caleb. His words hurt, because they made her think about how she was happy with him. Then, she just lowered her gaze, so Caleb let go of her hand. He let out a deep sigh and then continued.

"Well, I should probably go to sleep now. Tomorrow morning I'm going to school to talk with Hackett."

Hanna nodded and got up.

"Yeah, I should probably go too. I'm a little tired." she said.

"Okay. Thanks for Spanish. And... For stopping here to say hi." he replied with a smile.

"No problem. Goodnight." she said, approaching the door.

"Goodnight, Hanna. Sleep tight."

And then, Hanna exited the basement and went straight to her room. And, like something around a year and a half earlier, she fell asleep thinking about the 'bad boy' sleeping in her basement.

Caleb too, fell asleep thinking about the beautiful princess upstairs.

* * *

The next morning, as soon as Ashley got out of the house, Hanna knocked on Caleb's door and he opened it smiling.

"Morning." he smiled, making his way to the table.

"Good morning." Hanna replied, sitting next to him.

Caleb, as always, poured his bowl with some milk as Hanna drank her orange juice.

"So... Today you'll talk to principal Hackett..." Hanna started.

"Yeah. Let's see where this goes." he shrugged, before taking a sip of his milk.

"I can drive you to school if you want."

"I don't think that's a very good idea. I don't want people to know that I'm staying here."

"Yeah, I know... But I can say that I met you halfway and that so I gave you a ride. Plus it's not like everyone will see us getting out of the same car."

"Don't worry, Han. I'd rather walk anyway." he nodded at her.

"Fine." Hanna sighed.

The two shared a few silents moment, then Caleb got up of the table.

"Okay, so... I'm going. We'll see at school, maybe." he announced.

"Sure." Hanna smiled.

And then, Caleb walked out of the door with his backpack.

* * *

When he arrived at school, immediately he noticed that everyone was staring at him and whispering in each other's ears. He could imagine what they were saying. _'Hacker Rivers is back at school!' 'Hanna Marin's former boyfriend is back in Rosewood!' _and so on. Of course. If someone had ever talked to him there, it was just either because of his 'profession' or because of Hanna. They didn't know anything else about Caleb Rivers. He was just the hacker dating Hanna Marin. Anyway, he didn't care at all.

He walked to the entry but then noticed it was rather early, so he just sat at one of the tables outside and started playing Angry Birds. He was so focused on his level that he didn't notice someone sitting across him.

"Caleb?"

Caleb lifted his gaze from his mobile screen to the person sitting in front of him.

It was Travis.

"Hey, Travis." he greeted, shoving his phone into the pocket of his jeans.

"You're back?"

"Yeah, I'm back. Don't worry, though... I know about you and Hanna. I won't give you any troubles."

"Have you seen her?"

_'I've been seeing her very often! I live in her basement!' _he thought.

"Yeah. The night of the explosion at Toby Cavanaugh's house. We had a little chat and she told me what happened while I was away." he replied, nodding.

Travis nodded as well, slowly.

"Why you're back, though? It's not because of Hanna?" he asked.

Caleb bit his lip and took a deep breath.

"I'll be honest... I was back for her. Because I missed her. Because I hoped we could make up. I hoped that we could have another chance together. But then I learnt that there was someone else who was with her. And when I found out that it was you... I was happy. Seriously. I think you're a nice guy, Travis. And Hanna needs a nice guy by her side. Look, I just want her to be happy. And if she's happy with you, I'm perfectly fine with it. Just... Please, take care of her." he replied, honestly.

Travis gave him a small smile.

"I will." he replied.

"I'm planning on staying because I love her, though. And I will always love her. I want to be here because I want to be close to her. I swear that I won't intrude between you two, but you just can't forbid me to love her." Caleb precised then.

Travis felt a little confused by Caleb's last words. He furrowed his forehead and gave him a strange look, so Caleb smirked and continued.

"Travis... Don't worry about me. You're nicer than me. I left Hanna like a coward and I've come back only after a few months. You're the one with her now, right? Hanna definitely deserves the nice guy, not the one who runs away."

"I really like her, Caleb. I know how much she's special and I'll do anything not to lose her. Anything."

"Good. Well, I have to go now. Nice to see you, man." Caleb said standing up and stretching his hand towards Travis.

Travis held it and looked up at him.

"Same here. See you around." he replied.

Caleb nodded slightly and made his way to the principal's office, with the hands in the pockets, as Travis absent-mindedly watched him, lost in his own thoughts.

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! Thank you so much for your support! You gave me twelve reviews for the last chapter... Sooooo great ;) I'm happy you liked it :) What about this one? There was this Caleb/Travis face-to-face :P (on the show it should've totally happened a confront between the two, in my opinion!) I'm curious to know what do you guys think! Well, in the next chapter something quite important **will happen** :):) I'll update next week, probably after Tuesday! In the meanwhile, I'd be glad to read your reviews ;) Love you guys, till next time! xx -Atramea.**


	4. Chapter 4

Hanna arrived at school a little after, meeting the girls outside as always. They chatted a little as usual, talking about everything and nothing, until they saw Caleb inside from a window.

"Anyone knows where is Caleb staying now? I knew he was staying at Toby's, but now..." Spencer asked.

Emily and Aria shook their head and then all the three automatically glanced at Hanna.

"I have no idea." she shrugged, keeping her original plan not to tell about it.

Spencer raised an eyebrow at her and Hanna sighed.

"I don't know, okay? But if you wanna know something, I'm glad he decided to stay in Rosewood." she blurted out then.

"How do you know he decided that?" Aria asked.

Hanna rolled her eyes.

"We talked a little and he told me, okay? Why this third degree?" she scoffed.

"Oh, you know, this is just the guy whom you've cried over for months because he had left you for another chick and now he's suddenly back in town... Maybe we just wanted to know how you feel about him?" Emily replied.

Hanna sighed again and looked through the window from where she could see Caleb.

"He didn't cheat on me. Things just got messed, and... He had to go. But like I said, I'm happy he's back now. I'm not mad at him. And he told me he wants to help us with -A, so..." she said then, still looking there.

Aria, Spencer ed Emily exchanged looks and then nodded, as Travis approached Hanna.

"Hey." he greeted Hanna and the girls, smiling.

The other three girls waved at him and told Hanna they were going to class, so she and Travis remained alone.

"Why haven't you told me that Caleb was back in town?" Travis asked, directed.

Hanna opened her mouth to say something, but then neither a word got out of it.

"We had a little chat earlier. He told me that you two saw each other the other night..." he continued, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, that's true. I didn't think it was so important to tell you." Hanna replied.

Travis sighed and bit his lip, then Hanna continued.

"What did he tell you?"

"To take care of you."

Hanna bit her bottom lip and lowered her gaze at that.

"He said he won't intrude between us, if you're happy with me. But he also made it clear that he loves you." Travis continued.

"What?" Hanna asked, unsure of what she had just heard.

Travis nodded.

"Yeah. He told me that he loves you." he repeated.

Hanna pursed her lips and looked at her feet.

"Well, you know... We have history, I guess that's normal that he still feels kind of attached to me. But... Caleb may have a lot of defects, but he's honest. If he said he's not going to cause problems, then he won't." Hanna said, still looking at the floor.

"But I'm worried about you." Travis replied.

Hanna, then, lifted her gaze to him.

"Hanna, you can neither look into my eyes while talking about him. Maybe he won't intrude between us, okay, I wanna trust him, but... Maybe his return is itself something annoying to you. I can understand, he's a nice guy but he hurt you, and..." he continued, but Hanna interrupted him.

"It's not a problem. I'm fine with him here. I just really don't want to talk about him, okay?"

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Hanna nodded with decision.

"Well, then let's just go to class." he stated, placing a hand on her back.

The two walked inside, and then passed right next to Caleb. Hanna gave him a small smile, which he returned, and then Caleb nodded his head towards Travis, who waved at him.

"Isn't it a little awkward?" Travis whispered to Hanna, both walking away.

She shrugged.

"We aren't mad at each other. He's been nice to me since he's back, so... No, it's not awkward. It's okay." she replied, looking away from Travis' eyes.

"Even if he still loves you?" he asked, stopping her from walking.

Hanna turned to him and sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Look, Travis... Caleb and I are no longer together. That's all you need to know. And now, please, no more questions or talking about him, okay?" she said with decision.

He sighed deeply but then nodded.

"Okay. See you later." he said then, quickly kissing her cheek.

She smiled at him watching as he walked to his own class, and then turned to Caleb, still there.

"Everything okay with Hackett?" she said loud enough to make him hear.

He turned his head to her and smiled.

"I haven't talked to him yet. He just told me to wait until the speakers say my name." he shrugged slightly.

"Well, good luck then. I'll see you at..." she replied, stopping her sentence before saying the word 'home' to make sure no one would have heard.

Caleb nodded and gave her a wink, so Hanna turned on her heels and entered her class, smiling.

She was just so damn grateful that Travis hadn't asked her if she still loved Caleb, because that would have been a really difficult question...

Because she knew the answer.

* * *

Hanna had texted Caleb during her classes to offer him a ride home, but he had texted back writing he was already home because he was done with Hackett and that he could have done his tests the next week. After a little texting chat during her Literature class, Emilly nudged at her.

"Who are you talking to?" she whispered.

"Huh?" Hanna whispered back, her eyes leaving the screen of her mobile for a second.

"Is it Travis?"

"Um... No, actually it's Caleb." Hanna admitted, biting her lip.

Emily gave her a strange look.

"I just... I told you, we've been talking a little, lately. He wants to do some make up tests to come back to school, so today he talked with Hackett, and I was just asking him what Hackett told him. That's all." she said, shrugging.

"Hanna, I know you. You still feel something for him, that's pretty obvious. It's like written on your forehead." Emily stated.

Hanna swallowed and looked away.

"You've never stopped loving him, haven't you?" Emily continued.

"Em... It's late now. And I'm not expecting anything from him... Anymore. We're no longer together. I'm with Travis." Hanna muttered, nervously tapping her fingernails on the desk.

"But you're texting him..."

"So what? It's not like we're getting married! He's back for me and I'm glad he is. He only has me here, okay? I just wanna be sure he's fine."

"So... You're friends."

"Sure. _Friends_." Hanna repeated, even though 'friends' sounded extremely wrong to her.

"And... You really don't know if your _friend_ has a place where he can sleep at night?"

Hanna shook her head quickly. Maybe _too_ quickly, because Emily had a look plastered on her face saying 'You can't fool me'. Anyway, Hanna shoved her phone in her purse and pretended to listen to the lesson.

* * *

When Hanna got in her car to go home, her mobile started ringing. She grabbed it from her purse. It was a call from her mom.

"Hey, mom... What's up?"

"Hanna, I'm home right now, and..."

Hanna's heart stopped. She was supposed to be at work. She was home, instead. And why she was calling her? Did she find out about Caleb?

"You're not at work?" she asked then, interrupting her mother.

"No, Hanna... Look, I see you're not here yet, so I have to tell you by phone... I got an important offer and I have to leave for the weekend. I really can't say no, it's an important meeting and if everything's going okay, I may get a promotion, so... I've come here to pack quickly, because I have a plane in something like two hours, so... Are you okay with this? I mean, maybe you're scared to be home alone after what happened lately, but you know you can call your friends or go to some of them, and..."

Ashley was talking so fast that Hanna was neither sure she had understood everything.

"It's okay, mom. If that's important, you should totally go. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I can tell the girls to come over for the night. Plus, it's just a weekend, and it's not like I'm five years old." she replied then.

"Good. But call me for anything. I'm going now, okay? I know this was a little sudden, I wasn't expecting it either, and I'm sorry I couldn't say goodbye, but..."

"Mom, don't worry. Go." Hanna interrupted her, chuckling.

"Okay, sweetie. Promise me that you'll be careful."

"Promise. Good luck, mom."

"Thanks. I love you, Hanna."

"Love you too. Bye."

And then Hanna hung up.

_Weekend alone with Caleb_. That's what she thought.

* * *

Once she was home, she ran to the basement and opened the door to find Caleb working with his pc.

"Hey." he greeted, raising an eyebrow at her unexpected 'irruption'.

"Hey, you heard my mom earlier? She should have come here."

"Oh, yeah... I was already here in the basement to be careful, though. I know your mom's work time, but I wanted to be safe... What she was doing here by the way?"

"She came to pack. She'll be away for the weekend. Work stuff." Hanna shrugged.

"Oh..." Caleb commented, nodding.

"So... I thought you could stay in the guest room for these couple of days. I'm sure that couch is comfortable enough for you, but a bed is definitely better."

Caleb smiled and closed his pc.

"Thanks." he said.

"You're welcome. C'mon now, you can come out of this secret cave." she chuckled.

Caleb chuckled as well and followed Hanna upstairs.

"Want something to drink?" Hanna asked, walking to the fridge.

"No, I'm okay. Thank you." Caleb replied.

Hanna took a glass of water, as Caleb stood there.

"Well, I guess that today you can take a break from studying, right?" she said then, placing her empty glass in the sink.

Caleb smiled.

"What do you have in mind?" he asked.

"How do you feel about a long Just Dance tournament?" Hanna suggested, smiling.

Caleb laughed at that.

"You know you'll lose, right?" he said then.

"I've got better, trust me. The one who'll lose, then, will go grab take-away for dinner to the Brew. So... Are you in?"

"It will be easy." he smirked.

"Don't be so sure of yourself."

* * *

The two spent their afternoon playing their favorite game. They were used to play that when they were together, and Caleb was always the winner. He was unbeatable. Hanna wanted to play because she missed even moments like those with him. And in fact she had fun like she hadn't had in a long time. They laughed like kids, both of them not thinking about anything but having fun together. They danced every possible song, occasionally taking a break to drink something, but eventually, the winner was Caleb. As always.

"I can't believe it!" Hanna whined, breathing heavily and climbing on the couch.

Caleb did a happy dance to celebrate, jumping everywhere, as Hanna laughed. Then, he finally climbed on the couch next to her.

"Don't say I didn't tell you." he chuckled.

"One day I'll beat you. I will, it's a promise."

"Well... We'll see."

Hanna roamed a hand through her messy hair and lightly shook her head, made them fall on her shoulders. Caleb couldn't help but notice how much she looked beautiful even after playing Just Dance for hours. Then, he woke up from his dream and cleared his throat.

"Anyway, I can go to take the food. Don't worry." he told her.

"What? No! A challenge is a challenge... I lost, so I have to go. What do you want?"

"A cheeseburger... And some french fries." he smiled.

Hanna nodded, but then she decided to bring up something.

"You know... Travis told me about your little chat of today."

"Oh... Yeah, we... We talked." Caleb stuttered.

"He told me you said that you still love me."

The two shared a long silent look.

"That's true." he breathed out after an eternity.

Hanna sighed, without stopping eye-contact with him.

"I didn't mean to be intimidatory. Don't worry, though, I won't be a problem for your relationship with him, and..." Caleb tried to add, but Hanna stopped him.

"I would have preferred hearing that from you."

Caleb, then, lowered his gaze.

"Well, if you want me out of here, I understand..." he murmured then.

"Of course not. Look, Caleb... I'm the one who asked you to stay here. And the fact that you... Well, you know..."

"The fact that I love you?" he blurted out for her.

Hanna bit her lip and then continued.

"Well, it doesn't change this. Anything."

Caleb stared at her, not knowing what to say. And Hanna did the same, even if she could feel something pushing her towards his lips.

"Okay, well... I'm gonna go, I'm pretty hungry. I'll be right back." she said then, getting up from the couch before anything could happen.

Caleb nodded quickly and then watched her take her coat and exit the house. He sighed as soon as she closed the door. Living under her same roof without being able to touch her was a thousand times harder than he thought.

His mobile buzzed a few seconds later, and it was right Hanna.

_Forgot the keys...I'm gonna ring the doorbell._

He typed back a simple 'ok', then he placed his mobile on the table and rubbed his eyes. Maybe he shouldn't have told Travis those things. But neither to Hanna. Maybe he should have just kept them for himself, instead of putting Hanna in a situation so awkward. She was with another guy, but she gave him a place to stay even after all the pain he had caused to her. He should have just been grateful, not telling her -well, letting her know- his feelings. This had made everything awkward. Even if he could feel that she still felt something for him as well.

He didn't know how much time he spent thinking about that, he just heard the doorbell and went to the door to open it.

He made a mistake. He should have looked through the peephole first. But he didn't.

In front of him, he didn't find Hanna. He found Travis.

The guy widened his eyes, and Caleb tried to say something, but he couldn't. What could he say? He was in his ex girlfriend's house, he had just opened the door to his ex girlfriend's current boyfriend who also knew that he was still in love with her. _Awesome_.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Travis exclaimed.

"Travis..." came a voice behind him.

Hanna had just arrived, with the take-away bag in her hands.

"So... What's going on here?" Travis asked her, shaking his head in disbelief.

Hanna and Caleb looked at each other. Maybe it was time to tell the truth... Or at least to try to.

* * *

**A/N: OOOOOPS! Cliffhanger :P I loved writing this chapter! There's some serious drama coming up by the way ;) Can't wait to know what do you guys think! :D Hope you liked to read this as I liked to write it :) Anyway, I wanna thank all of you for the reviews... pigua89, KlarolinexDelenaxx, bladgeyluvr09, , all the guests and the reviewers of the older chapters... Seriously, it means a lot to me! (bladgeyluvr09, you don't know how much I love your stories... I'm so happy to find you here :D) So... What's gonna happen in the next chapter? You'll have a Travis/Hanna pretty intense talk... ;) Let me know what do you think! Thanks again for the support and everything, guys! Lots of love, till next time ;) xx -Atramea.**


	5. Chapter 5

Hanna handed to Caleb the take-away bag, awkwardly. She felt like she was in some romantic comedy.

"Start eating. I need to talk with Travis." she told Caleb, immediately turning to Travis.

Caleb nodded, looking from her to Travis, and then went inside, closing the door behind his back.

"So you've invited your ex boyfriend who's still in love with you to your house for dinner? How sweet... Sounds a really romantic thing to me!" Travis said sarcastically.

"Can we just go in your car? I don't want all the neighborhood to hear us yelling." Hanna replied quietly.

He sighed and walked quickly to his car, as Hanna followed him silently. When they were both in the car, Travis didn't say anything. He just looked at her waiting for explications. Hanna had her gaze low and she was roughly chewing on her lower lip.

"I didn't invite him for dinner. He..." she started, but then she stopped.

"What? He showed up at your door and you haven't had the guts to send him away?" Travis said after a few silent moments.

"No. He was already in there. We played Just Dance and I lost, so I had to bring the food for dinner. It was kind of a bet."

"I don't get it... Why was he already in your house? How much time have you two spent together?"

Hanna took a deep breath. She had to tell him. Now or never.

"Caleb was staying at Toby's. When he was back in town he didn't have a place to stay, so Toby offered him a room. But then, you know what happened to Toby's house... And Caleb found himself with nowhere to go. A couple of days ago, it was night and I was coming home... And I met him. He was on a bus bench. He was gonna spend the night there. I couldn't leave him there... So... He came home with me. He didn't want to, but I eventually convinced him. He also wanted to leave the next day, but I asked him to stay. So... He's been sleeping on the couch of the basement for a couple of days. My mom doesn't know. Nobody knows. I've just given him a place to stay." she blurted out, avoiding eye-contact with Travis.

The guy couldn't believe it. He chuckled and shook his head.

"This is insane. You basically asked your ex boyfriend to live together..." he muttered.

"Look, I know what it looks like, but..." Hanna tried to explain, but Travis interrupted her, yelling.

"But what? You're like roommates? Of course... You've just been kind with him, you're just letting him live in your house when he broke up with you for another stupid chick and came back only when he got tired of her! It's the most normal thing in the world! It's normal that you share your house with your ex boyfriend who still loves you... Or at least is what he says... It's normal! It's totally logic! Yeah, you're dating me and you live with your ex... That's okay, isn't it?"

"Travis, I'm sorry, okay? But... He doesn't have anyone here. He only has me..."

"So what? Is it compassion? I don't think so, Hanna. If you just wanted to help him, you would have just paid him a room somewhere. Plus, I'm pretty sure that Spencer has got a large barn, and I don't think that she would have said 'no' to leave it to Caleb for a while if you would have asked her."

Hanna sighed.

"You don't understand..." she murmured then.

"Of course I don't! Am I really supposed to understand this?" he yelled.

"I care about him, okay? He has done a lot for me and I owe him so much. Letting him sleep on an uncomfortable couch in my freaking basement is the least I can do for him."

"Seriously? I definitely think I've heard enough now!"

"What do you mean?"

"I can't deal with this, Hanna. I can't accept the fact that Caleb sleeps at your place. And you can't ask me to understand."

"So what?"

Travis took a deep breath before give her his sentence.

"If you're gonna let him stay, well... I'm sorry but we're done."

Hanna bit her lip and shook her head. She looked into his eyes and replied.

"Don't ask me to choose between you and him."

"Yeah, because it would be too easy for you, right? You'd choose Caleb, of course. Why are you letting him stay, otherwise? You're doing this not because you didn't want him to sleep on a bench. You're doing this not because you simply care about him. You're doing this because you still love him just like he still loves you. And now try to tell me that I'm wrong."

Hanna lowered her gaze, awkwardly.

"Guess what? I'm waiting for you to tell me that." Travis continued.

Hanna, finally, locked eyes with Travis and spoke.

"I prefer to lose you than lose him again. I'm sorry."

And then, without giving him time to say anything, she got out of the car and walked back to her house, without turning around.

* * *

Hanna opened the door and closed it behind her back. Caleb was sitting at the table of the kitchen. He hadn't started eating, though. He was waiting for her. She approached him and sat at the table, next to him, without saying anything.

"Hanna, I'm sorry, I should have looked through the peephole, and..." he started, but she interrupted him.

"Caleb, it's not your fault. I had to tell him, sooner or later."

"You told him I've been sleeping here?"

"Yeah. I didn't want to lie anymore."

"Is he mad?"

"We broke up."

Caleb remained speechless for a few moments, trying to process everything.

"Hanna, I knew this was a bad idea. I shouldn't have accepted your offer, I'm messing with your life and I didn't want to. I didn't want to give you problems, or..." he started, but Hanna cut him off.

"It's okay. He doesn't understand me. He doesn't even try..."

"Well, it's such a big deal. I mean, I don't know if I would understand either, if I were him. Look, I'm serious, I'll find another place to stay so I can leave and you can make things up with him. Just tell him that..."

Hanna cut him off again.

"Caleb, stop it. I don't want you to leave."

"I won't leave Rosewood, I'll just find somewhere else to stay here in town..."

"I don't want you to find somewhere else either. I want you to keep staying here."

Caleb sighed.

"But Travis doesn't." he murmured.

"I don't care about what he wants. He asked me to kick you out, otherwise we would have been done. And I chose to break up with him. It was my choice, okay?"

"I just... I would have never want you to have to take such a decision. I feel guilty because I caused all of this."

"Travis asked me to choose, not you. But, you know, maybe it's better like this. It's better that he knows that..." she replied quickly, but then she suddenly stopped.

"It's better that he knows what?" Caleb asked.

"That... I'd always choose you."

They stared at each other for an undefinied time, until Caleb lowered his gaze and cleared his throat.

"Hanna..." he started, without even knowing what ti say.

Hanna shook her head and then got up from the table.

"Hey, you know what? I'm not so hungry after all, I think I'll go to bed. You can stay here and eat everything, okay? And remember that you can sleep in the guest room. Goodnight, Caleb." she said quickly, without giving him the chance to say anything.

Then, she walked to the stairs and went straight to her bedroom.

Caleb let out a deep long sigh and rubbed his eyes. Even if he couldn't hide to himself that the fact that Hanna and Travis were no longer a thing and that she had said that she would always choose him made him glad, he felt like he had messed with Hanna's life. And he knew he had no right to. He pulled out the food from the take-away bag and ate his cheeseburger and some fries, leaving Hanna's sandwich in the bag. He knew she could have gotten up in the middle of the night hungry, since she hadn't eaten now. Then, he left the kitchen and went to the guest room, trying to get some rest, but all he could do once he was lying on the bed was thinking about what would have happened now between him and Hanna.

* * *

Hanna closed the door of her bedroom behind her back and climbed on the bed. A thousand thoughts started running through her head. Maybe she shouldn't have said those things to Caleb. Maybe she shouldn't have made this more awkward than how already was. And maybe she shouldn't have ran to her bedroom now, either. She didn't even know why she had done it. But she was sure that she had made the best thing breaking up with Travis. She didn't want to fool him. It was clear that between them it didn't work, and Caleb's coming back had only confirmed that. She _loved_ Caleb. She just wasn't ready to retry yet. She didn't want to suffer like she had suffered when he had left. She needed time to think.

While thinking, her mobile beeped. She grabbed it from the nightstand and a shiver ran down her spine.

_Which house will blow up next? Maybe the one who allows tramps in? –A_

* * *

Caleb was lying on the bed on his stomach, in only his boxers. The bed was big and comfortable, but he couldn't sleep. He was thinking about Hanna. A part of himself wanted to go to her room and try to talk with her, try to explain the way he felt for her, try to tell her that he loved her, since he would have wanted to hear it right from him. But he knew she needed her space right now.

He almost jumped off the bed when the door wide opened. Hanna, in a large t-shirt and some sweatpants, entered the room without knocking, with her phone in the hands. She looked upset.

"Caleb, I..." she sobbed.

It was then that he realized she was crying.

"Hey... What's wrong?" he asked concerned, getting up from the bed.

Hanna didn't say or do anything, she just gave him her mobile, so he read the text. He sighed and gave it back to her.

"It's okay. Nothing will happen. I'm sure it's just a provocation. –A just wants us to be aware of the fact that he, she or whatever it is knows that I'm here. Just let me check if downstairs is everything okay." he said.

Hanna nodded.

"Did you lock all the doors, right?" he asked.

Hanna nodded once again.

"Stay here. I'll be right back." Caleb concluded, walking downstairs.

After assuring that the situation was quiet, he returned to Hanna, who ha waited for him in the guest room.

"It seems quiet. But, well, if it makes you feel better... Do you want me to stay up for the night, just in case?" he asked her.

Hanna shook her head. She was worried and Caleb could tell it. He sat on the bed next to her and gave her a small smile.

"Well, we both can stay up and do something together if you can't sleep. You can retry to beat me at Just Dance, you know..." he continued.

Hanna chuckled and shook her head.

"I don't like losing." she added simply.

"Well, then... Are you hungry? I saved your sandwich, you can still eat it."

"Well... This sounds good."

"I'll come with you." Caleb announced, grabbing a pair of sweatpants and slipping in them.

They spent a little time together in the kitchen, with Hanna eating and Caleb making conversation trying not to make her think about –A. When she was done, they returned upstairs and Caleb walked Hanna to her room.

"Try to get some sleep, okay?" Caleb smiled at her.

Hanna sighed and nodded.

"I'm right there. Knock if you need anything." he added then pointing at the door of the guest room, noticing her worry.

"Thank you." she replied with a smile.

Caleb smiled back.

"Goodnight." he whispered then, briefly touching her forearm.

"Goodnight." Hanna replied, as she watched him make his way to the guest room.

* * *

About half an hour later their goodnights, it started raining. There were loud thunderbolts, and the rain fell more violently as the time passed.

Hanna turned in her sheets. She absolutely couldn't sleep. As if –A hadn't already scared her enough, now there was even this storm going on. And she had always hated storms.

Caleb, in the other room, couldn't sleep either. He didn't know if it was because of –A, Hanna, the storm or whatever else, he just couldn't sleep. He was staring at the ceiling, wide awake.

A soft knock made him turn to the closed door.

"Hanna?" he asked.

"Can I come in?" her adorable shy voice replied from outside.

"Sure."

And then, Hanna got in the room and closed the door.

"I can't sleep." she simply said.

"Me neither." Caleb replied, smiling a little.

Hanna stood there, chewing on her bottom lip, unsure about what to do. Caleb, then, did the only thing that he had to do. He uncovered the other side of the large bed and patted that space.

"Get in." he smiled at her.

Hanna opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't.

"Hanna... I know you're scared... C'mon, the bed is large enough." he added.

"Are you sure I won't bother you?" she replied, almost in a whisper.

"How can you even think something like that?"

Hanna nodded, a little embarassed, and walked to the bed, lying next to Caleb. Then, he put the blankets over her and gave her another small smile.

"I'm an idiot, I know. I'm almost twenty and I still fear storms." she whispered.

Caleb chuckled.

"You received a threatening text, it's not just about thunders. No problem, though. You're still the bravest person I know." he replied softly.

Hanna smiled up at him, and he couldn't help but stroke her cheek. Hanna could feel her heart beating faster only at his brief touch. And right then, a thunder, louder than all the previous, echoed outside. Hanna, hearing that, shut her eyes and then literally threw herself into Caleb's arms, impulsively.

"Oh... S-sorry." she stuttered when she realized what she had just done.

Caleb smiled and didn't let her go, holding her closer to him.

"Don't be." he whispered, rubbing her back.

Hanna looked at him and bit her lip, as she felt Caleb's hand going up and down her back. Now, she couldn't hear thunders, the only thing that she could hear was her hyper-quick heartbeat and Caleb's soft breaths. She had missed that feeling.

"It was just a thunder." he whispered again, still rubbing her back.

Hanna nodded, and Caleb let her adjust against his chest.

"I'm right here, you don't have to be scared, okay? Nothing bad will happen, I promise..." he continued.

"Thank you, Caleb..." she managed to whisper back then.

He kissed her forehead.

"Sleep now. Goodnight." he concluded.

"Goodnight." she replied, closing her eyes.

Caleb's hand rubbing her back and the warmth of his body were enough to make her forget anything bad. She allowed him to wrap his arms around her body and she cuddled against his chest. She only needed him. The guilt for the break-up with Travis, the fear for the –A's text and for the storm... There was nothing of that. There was just peace, protection and... Well, there was _love_. Hanna had missed like hell to sleep in Caleb's arms.

Caleb watched as Hanns slowly fell asleep against his chest. That was exactly what he meant for a perfect ending of a day. There were absolutely no words to describe how much he had missed the feeling of being able to hug her during the night.

"I love you, princess..." he whispered before falling asleep.

* * *

**A/N: A long and intense chapter to make you guys forgive me for my late ;) College is killing me :( Anyway, I'll always find time to write&amp;update, no matter what :) Thank you everyone for the amazing reviews! I'm happy that you liked the last chapter ;) I hope this was even better... Haleb is just... Aww, I can't even tell :D so, let me know your opinions :):) Looking forward to read your reviews! Love you guys, thanks for everything ;) xx -Atramea.**


	6. Chapter 6

The soft and quiet noise of the morning rain woke Hanna up. She slightly lifted her head from the pillow and slowly opened her eyes. She was in the guest room. And when she realized where she was, she remembered she had slept with Caleb. He wasn't there with her, though. And Hanna, as soon as she saw that he wasn't next to her, immediately felt scared.

Was he gone? Once again?

She got up from bed and watched as the rain kept falling down on the streets through the window. And then, she exited the room and went downstairs. Caleb wasn't there either.

'_Maybe he's in the bathroom._' she thought. But no, he wasn't.

Caleb wasn't in the house.

And why the hell he had to go out on a Saturday rainy morning? Sure, he had left. Again. Because he knew he couldn't be there so close with her.

He had ran away, again.

Hanna sat on the stairs and took her head between her hands. It had felt so good to sleep with him. Just sleeping, of course, but she had felt safer from everything. And the thought of Travis hadn't even crossed her mind. Caleb was the one, she had always known it, though. She would have wanted to wake up with him, but he wasn't there anymore. He had left without even saying goodbye.

Without even saying 'I love you'.

When that thought came up to her mind, the front door wide opened revealing Caleb with an umbrella and the keys of the house in the hands.

"Hey." he smiled at her as he came inside, closing the door.

Hanna felt totally relieved.

He wasn't gone.

"I didn't want to wake you up." he continued, taking off the coat.

He was carrying some bags.

"Where have you been?" Hanna asked.

"To the grocery. I woke up early and I had a cup of coffee for breakfast, so in the meanwhile I turned the TV on. I heard the news, and it seems that today's coming a tornado. They recommended everyone to stay in the house from two pm today, and maybe the tornado could go on for the whole weekend, so... I thought we needed some food since we'll have to stay closed here for who-knows-how-long." he explained, as he placed the bags on the table.

"Really? A tornado?" Hanna asked, widening her eyes.

"Don't worry, okay? I'll be here with you." Caleb assured.

Hanna bit her lip and nodded awkwardly, then she realized she was still in her sweatpants.

"I go get dressed." she announced, getting up from the stairs.

Caleb chuckled.

"What?" Hanna snapped.

"Get dressed for what? You have to stay here. You can't go out." Caleb smiled.

"I'll get dressed anyway."

"Okay." Caleb nodded, smirking.

And with that, Hanna disappeared upstairs.

* * *

While she was getting dressed, her mobile rang. It was her mom.

"Mom?"

"Oh my God, Hanna! Are you okay? Is there someone with you in the house?"

"Keep calm, mom. It's okay. Uhm... Emily's here with me. The tornado won't come until two pm, though..."

"I know but don't you dare go out, did you hear me? Don't move from there! And close all the windows, okay?"

"I will, don't freak out. I'm not alone." Hanna replied, smiling at the thought of Caleb there with her.

"Okay. Sweetie, be careful. And call me for anything. I'm sorry I had to leave right this weekend, oh my God..."

"Mom, don't worry. Really. I'll be fine. Be careful you too, okay?"

"Okay. I have to hung up now. But call me whenever you need to."

"Sure. Bye."

"Bye, sweetie."

And then, Hanna hung up. But as soon as she did, it rang again. This time, it was Spencer.

"Spence?"

"Hanna? Everything okay?"

"God, Spencer... You sound like my mom... This tornado will not be that much of a big deal, and..."

"I'm not talking about the tornado. I'm talking about –A."

Hanna was confused.

"–A?" she asked.

"Look, we all received the text last night. The house which allows tramps in is yours, without a doubt. We knew since the first moment that Caleb was staying there, and that was the confirmation. Anyway, it's not what I called you for... Did –A do anything last night? Are you okay?"

Hanna sighed and bit her lip. Of course their friends knew from the first moment.

"Yeah. Yeah, everything's okay. I guess it was just –A's way to tell us that he, she or whatever it is knows about Caleb staying here. I was scared about the text, honestly, but... I eventually fell asleep, someway." Hanna replied, thinking about _how_ she had actually fallen asleep.

"Fine. So... Is he there with you? I really don't want to sound like your mom, but since she's out of town, I wouldn't want you to be alone today... Is Caleb there? You guys will be okay with the tornado? Do you need anything?"

Hanna smiled.

"He's here. We'll be okay. Thanks, Spencer." she said then.

"Okay."

"I'm sorry if I lied to you guys about him, but..."

Spencer interrupted her.

"It doesn't matter. We knew it anyway. But maybe Travis..."

This time, it was Hanna who interrupted her.

"Travis and I... We're over. He found out about Caleb last night and was pissed off, and then he basically asked me to kick Caleb out or he would have broken up with me. I guess it was legit, though. But... Well, I didn't kick Caleb out, so..."

"And... Are you fine?"

"I am. I really am, Spence. Travis didn't deserve more lies and most of all a girl who doesn't love him. I think it was the best decision for everyone. Maybe it was kind of harsh, but... It was right."

"What about you and Caleb now?"

Hanna sighed and remained silent for a few seconds before replying, lowering her voice.

"I don't know exactly how to feel about him. Obviously, I have feelings for him, but I'm not ready to start things over. I need to trust him, and right now I'm not totally sure I can. I fear he could leave again, like he did some months ago for Ravenswood. This morning, for example... He woke up early and went to the grocery to take some food. So, when I woke up and didn't find him in the house, I started freaking out because I thought he was gone. Again. I can't restart a relationship like this. I can't wake up every morning scared not to find him. I just can't. That's why I'm trying not to be too close to him. I don't want to have him so close to me one day, and then lose him the next day."

"Well, you offered him your house... I think you're already very close to him, Han!"

"Yeah, but I couldn't leave him without a place to stay. I'm just helping him. To be honest, if I was totally me, if I let myself go without thinking about trust and stuff, I think I'd already be with him... Like... With him..."

"Okay, okay... I get it. Don't give me particulars."

"Yeah... Do you think I'm doing something wrong?"

"You're doing what you feel to do. This can never be wrong."

"What if I tell you that I slept with him last night?"

"Hanna!"

"Hey, hey, hey... Don't get me wrong. Just sleeping, I promise. You know, there was the text, and then the storm... I was scared and I couldn't sleep, plus it was pretty cold, so... We just shared the bed of the guest room."

"So... No cuddling either?"

"Well, actually... We cuddled, but... Just a little bit. Nothing too 'dangerous', they were like caresses, just... He kissed my forehead... I rested my head on his chest... But they were just things to calm me down. Okay, we slept pretty close to each other, but... It was innocent. I was scared and he was just protective with me. That's all."

Spencer chuckled a little.

"Alright, and there's something else that I should know?" she said then.

"Well..." Hanna started.

"There was a kiss?"

"No, but... He said that he loves me."

"What? And what did you say then?"

"He didn't tell me. He told Travis."

"Travis? Why?"

"It's pretty complicated. I promise I'll tell you everything, but... Not by phone."

"Okay. I have to go now. If you need anything, call me."

"Sure. Bye, Spence. Be careful."

"You too. Bye."

Then, Hanna hung up and finished getting dressed, so she got out of the room. She went downstairs and found Caleb setting the table for breakfast. She smiled and remained silent watching him. He hadn't noticed her presence and he was all focused with the dishes and everything. After a few seconds, Hanna entered the kitchen and a smile spreaded on his face.

"I thought you were hungry." he shrugged.

"Caleb, you didn't have to do this."

"I wanted to. C'mon, I made pancakes. You have to tell me if they're good."

"I know that your pancakes are good." Hanna said with a small smile.

Caleb smiled back and then pursed his lips at the thought of their past breakfast together.

"Well... Try it anyway." he said then with a slight shrug, as he placed a pancake in Hanna's dish.

Hanna shook her head smiling and then ate a piece of the pancake. And, yeah, they were as good as they used to.

"It's very good." she announced, with the mouth still full.

Caleb smiled and sat across her, starting eating as well.

"So... How did you sleep?" he asked casually, searching for her eyes.

Hanna blushed and kept looking at her dish.

"Uhm... I fell asleep quickly." she stuttered.

Caleb nodded slowly, playing with his fork.

"Me too, actually. But I don't think it was because of the mattress..." he stated, again searching for her eyes.

But Hanna didn't dare to look up. And she didn't say anything either. They finished eating in silence, then Hanna offered herself to wash the dishes as Caleb went for a shower.

* * *

When he came back downstairs, Hanna was sitting on the couch trying to find something on TV which wasn't just some news about the tornado. Caleb sat next to her and turned his head to her.

"What about one of your DVDs?" he asked.

"I guess it's our only chance not to think about the upcoming disaster outside there." she said raising her eyebrows.

"Okay, but I pick." Caleb smiled.

Hanna nodded, so Caleb got up and gave a look at her collection. He tried not to choose romantic movies, not only because he didn't like them, but also because it could have been definitely awkward, so he simply took _The Hunger Games _and put it in the player.

"What about _The Hunger Games_?" he asked, returning to his previous seat.

"Fine." she shrugged, pressing the play button.

They watched the first twenty minutes of the movie in an awkward silence. Caleb occasionally looked over at Hanna, but she kept staring at the screen. He almost felt uncomfortable on that couch, maybe because he was used to be so much closer to Hanna than that. He was used to have her all curled up against his chest, and not so far. Yeah, they had slept in the same bed just the previous night, but it had been a particular moment where Hanna needed to feel protection. Now there was just a huge embarassment, and when a thunder echoed outside and the TV screen went black, Caleb knew that neither the movie would have helped to handle that embarassment.

"Amazing." Hanna commented sarcastically, snorting.

Caleb sighed and threw his head back.

"Something to eat?" he asked casually, trying to say something.

"We've just had breakfast." Hanna replied.

"Yeah, right."

After a few other awkward minutes of total silence, Hanna decided to ask him something.

"Caleb?"

"Huh?"

"Can you tell me what happened in Ravenswood?"

She needed to know. She knew that something strange happened. She had even gone there once, and Caleb had told her about Miranda's death and the curse, but he also told her that he still needed to be there to solve things and keep promises. But now he was back in Rosewood, and Hanna wanted to know how things had ended.

Caleb sighed and scratched his head, unsure about what to say.

"I... Uhm... I don't really feel to talk about that." he stuttered.

"Where do you think you can go? We're alone, basically locked in this house, without electricity. I definitely think you can't escape."

Caleb swallowed and looked at the floor, still silent.

"Caleb... I know that for some reason you don't want to talk about it, and you probably will never want to, but... If you love me you should be able to open up with me." Hanna blurted out, without thinking too much.

Caleb glanced at her and pursed his lips. He loved her, of course he did. But how can you explain a thing like Ravenswood? He took a deep breath and wiped his hands against his thighs.

"Miranda... Is gone. Like, for good. Her uncle eventually helped me, Luke, Olivia and Remy to break the curse. And when we did it, everything returned normal. I think that now Miranda may rest in peace." he said quickly, not entering the details.

"But... What exactly happened there? What did you see? There's something which... Is like haunting you..." Hanna insisted, sincerely concerned.

"I saw things which I didn't think exist. I could see even a dead person, and she was so damn real that made me question if I was going crazy. You know, sometimes, when I wake up, I try to think that I just imagined everything, that... What happened actually never happened. That it was just a bad dream. I would like to forget what I saw, honestly. Because... It changed me in a way in which I didn't want to change. Now I don't know what's real and what it's not, and... I'm always afraid that someone may come up to me and tell me that the curse is back or something like that. But... I was close to the death more than once, so I learned one important thing there. That... We have to enjoy every single moment which life gives us, because we can't know if we will ever have another chance. And... That's probably what has brought me back to you as soon as I realized that I had finished what I had to do there. I have to try with all myself to keep up the important things of my life, no matter what."

Hanna looked at Caleb the whole time he spoke. He had talked like he had a huge weight on his chest. But when he had eventually mentioned her, a small smile had spreaded across his lips. He looked honest. And when Hanna looked into his eyes, even though she could see the darkness, she could also _still_ see his love for her. She knew it was true. He really loved her. No matter the time passed, the months parted from each other, Travis, Miranda, the curse, or everything. Yeah, maybe something in him was changed, but his feelings definitely weren't. His _heart_ wasn't.

Again without thinking, she came closer to him and simply wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in for an hug. Caleb wasn't expecting it, but he obviously hugged back.

"I would have gone crazy if something had happened to you." she whispered.

Caleb didn't know what to say, so he just held her tighter and made a small nod.

"Thank you for telling me, though." she added then, pulling away.

"Look... If I don't enter the details it's just because they're not... _Good_. It's not necessary for you to know them all. Everything's over now, so... I'd just like to leave that whole story behind and come back to my life." he replied with a slight shrug.

She gave him a small smile and nodded.

"There was neither a moment in which I haven't loved you, though." he added.

Hanna sighed and moved her gaze away, awkwardly.

"Don't worry, I... I know that I made a mistake not to tell you what was going on from day one. It's my fault if we're no longer together now, and... I don't want the curse to be an excuse. I was the stupid. I just thought I was protecting you. I thought that if you had known about the mess in which I was involved, you would have come to Ravenswood to help me, and... And I couldn't let that happen." he continued, noticing her uncomfortableness.

"So you left me." Hanna murmured, her gaze lost in the void.

"Yeah. But now I'm back. And... As much as I can be sorry for Travis, I... I really hope that you can forgive me someday. But if you won't, I would understand. Like I said, though, I had to try." he concluded, smiling softly once again.

Hanna looked at him and nodded slowly.

"Caleb... I'm not mad at you for everything that happened. We both made mistakes. But I'm not sure that I'm ready to restart things with you right now. I hope you can understand." she murmured then.

"Of course I understand, you and Travis broke up just yesterday, and..."

She interrupted him.

"That's not about him. I hate myself for this, but... He was just a way to forget you. Well... To try to forget you."

"Then... What's stopping you?"

"The thought of you leaving me again. I couldn't handle that pain once again." Hanna whispered, her eyes starting to get watery at the painful memory.

Caleb felt his heart break as he watched her expression. He totally hated himself for how much he had hurt her. He could understand her insecurities toward him.

"I will never forgive myself for having hurt you that way..." he whispered, more to himself than to her.

Hanna lowered her gaze and remained silent.

"I'll do my best to win your trust back, Hanna. And even if I know that they're just words, well... I will never leave you again." Caleb continued, this time louder than just a whisper.

Hanna smiled at him, bitterly. She took a deep breath and then got up from the couch.

"Well... I'll go to lock the windows upstairs." she announced.

Caleb nodded and watched her slowly walking away from him.

That was gonna be a long day.

* * *

**A/N: Finally I can update :) Hope you all enjoyed this! I loved all the reviews to the last chapter, though :) I'm so happy you're enjoying the story! What do you think about this chapter? Well, here, since the story had started right after 5x05, Hanna still hadn't had a true explanation about Ravenswood by Caleb, so I thought it was kinda needed. Anyway, I promise you a good next chapter, with the upcoming tornado which will force Hanna and Caleb to stay inside together ;) Let me know your thoughts as always! Thank you so much for everything! I'll update as soon as I can, just be a little patient because I have college :( Have a nice week! xx -Atramea. **


	7. Chapter 7

Hanna spent the whole morning in her bedroom, painting her nails, talking by phone and who knows what else just because she couldn't handle to be so close to Caleb for all that time. Caleb, on the other hand, understood that she was kinda avoiding him, so he just took advantage of the situation to study a little for his imminent tests. The morning went on like that, until Hanna showed up from the stairs by lunch time. The electricity was still gone, so they made just two sandwiches and ate them in an awkward silence.

Caleb didn't like the awkwardness between them, but he knew that there was because they still had feelings for each other. _Both_ of them.

They spoke just the necessary, then Hanna, after lunch, came back to her room and Caleb kept studying downstairs. But around half past two in the afternoon, another violent storm arrived in town, so Hanna rushed down the stairs knowing that the tornado was coming.

"Hey... So you locked all the windows upstairs?" Caleb asked, looking up from his book.

"Yeah... What about here? Is everything locked?" Hanna asked back.

Caleb nodded, then closed his book and looked through the closed window. The storm went worse as the time passed.

"I think we'd better go to the basement, though. There aren't windows down there... You know, just to be extra-careful." he said then, turning to Hanna.

She nodded quickly. She was beyond scared. She feared 'normal' storms, obviously she was freaking out for that storm which was just anticipating the tornado. Yeah, she was glad to have Caleb there, despite the awkwardness and everything.

"Okay." he smiled, heading to the door of the basement.

"Uhm... Wait. Just give me a second." Hanna said, before running up the stairs again.

Caleb smirked and waited for her, then she came back with her laptop.

"Well... There's no electricity, but my laptop's still full-battery, so we could watch a movie or something." she said.

Caleb nodded and flashed her another smile, knowing that it was to avoid awkward silences between them, then they went downstairs. The thunders were louder than before and Caleb knew how Hanna was uncomfortable with that. They sat on the couch one next to the other, and Hanna immediately opened her laptop.

"I don't have so many movies, but... I have a few episodes of _Friends_... Did you like it, right?" she commented.

Caleb smiled again, happy of the fact that she remembered that.

"Yeah. I still like it. Sounds good to me." he replied, nodding.

"Okay." Hanna said as she started searching in her laptop.

Caleb couldn't help but notice how much she looked beautiful in the wallpaper. It was a picture of her and her friends. Maybe it was of some months ago, anyway she looked totally gorgeous. He felt a little of sadness when he remembered that her wallpaper used to be a picture of her with him, but it was comprehensible that it wasn't like that anymore. Tons of pictures of them together were still basically everywhere in that house, by the way.

However, Hanna found an episode of _Friends_ and pressed the play button. She was very close to Caleb since she had to make sure that he could see the screen of her laptop as well, and their thighs touched each other. The thunders kept echoing outside, and Hanna occasionally jumped slightly. Caleb, noticing that, stretched an arm over his head and then lied it on the back of the couch, right behind Hanna's shoulders. He knew it would have made her feel protected. She noticed it, but it didn't bother her, at all. She felt safe being that close to him as the storm kept going.

* * *

Four episodes of _Friends_ later, the tornado had completely arrived to town, and there were very loud noises outside, along with the pouring rain and the thunders.

"Shit." Hanna muttered, squeezing her eyes and istinctively throwing herself against Caleb.

He let out a slight chuckle and wrapped his arms around her shaky body, just like he did the previous night. The noises were really really loud, and the walls were almost trembling due to the violence of the storm. Hanna didn't care if that acting wasn't really 'friend-zone acting', she needed Caleb's protection like the previous night and she was glad he could give her. He gently ran his hand up and down her back, trying to soothe her, as she just hid her face in the crook of his neck, inhaling that cheap cologne of his which she had always loved.

"How long will it last?" she asked, her voice muffled against his skin.

"I don't know. The news said for the whole weekend, but I think it will be definitely less violent than now in the next hours." he replied softly, without stopping his hand.

Hanna didn't reply but remained comfortable in that same position, as Caleb's other hand innocently played with the hem of her shirt.

"I'm glad you're here." Hanna murmured suddenly.

A small smile lighten Caleb's face at her words.

"So am I." he whispered, placing his chin on the top of her head.

She searched for a contact with Caleb's body more than once since then, everytime she heard a thunder too loud or something like that, and Caleb was obviously more than willing to give her his protection. After something like an hour of violent storm, the situation was definitely better, so Hanna shifted herself and got up from the couch, taking the laptop with her.

"Is it over?" she asked, turning to Caleb.

"I don't think so, but it seems calmer now." he replied, still sitting on the couch.

"I'm gonna check if upstairs is everything okay."

"I'll come with you." Caleb said, getting up from the couch as well.

"I can take care of myself." Hanna replied, raising an eyebrow.

"I know, but... Storms are not exactly your best friends and we both know it." he continued with a small smile.

Hanna rolled her eyes but let him come with her, of course.

* * *

They checked if everything in the house was okay, then they started settling some candles since it was getting dark and they still didn't have electricity. The rest of the afternoon they kept watching _Friends_, as the storm seemed to stay quiet. When it came dinner time, they opted for some salad, and it was rather weird to eat sitting just the two of them at the table with candles. It looked _definitely_ romantic, and Hanna returned to be particularly quiet. Caleb stayed silent too, but his mind smiled at the thought of Hanna all curled up against him because of the thunders and then all embarassed eating a salad with him. It was cute.

After dinner, Caleb sat at the table doing some Math exercises, with just the light of the candles, and Hanna sat accross him with her laptop, playing some stupid game. The storm had returned to be pretty violent by now, so Hanna didn't want to be too far from Caleb. After a while, though, the battery of her laptop went off, so she stayed doing nothing next to him. It was so damn cold and she was shivering, despite her father's old jumper which she had put on to stay warm.

"Hey, I... I think I'm going to bed. It's too cold here, I just want to be under the blankets." she announced after a few minutes.

Caleb looked up at her, biting the top of his pencil as he did so. _'So damn hot' _Hanna couldn't help but think.

"You'll be okay upstairs alone?" he asked.

Hanna nodded, even though she wasn't so sure, actually.

"Okay. I have to finish this one and I'll go to bed too. Anyway, if you need something, just come and tell me, fine?" he continued, avoiding to ask if she wanted to sleep with him that night as well.

Hanna nodded again.

"Goodnight." she said with a smile, taking a candle with her.

"Goodnight." Caleb replied, smiling back.

* * *

It was about ten minutes that Hanna had gone upstairs, and the storm was back to the violence level of the afternoon. The thunders were even louder, and the walls were trembling again. Caleb couldn't focus enough to study, and the feeling of the walls trembling wasn't exactly relaxing to him. He closed the book and decided to go to sleep, surprised that Hanna hadn't come to 'call help'. But as soon as he got up from the chair, Hanna rushed down the stairs, a frown on her face.

"I'm scared..." she whispered.

She looked so vulnerable, like a kid who had just had a nightmare. Caleb smiled and approached her.

"It's okay. I was coming upstairs, though. Do you want to stay up for a little while maybe?" he asked softly.

Hanna shook her head.

"I just want this to stop." she murmured, before letting out a deep sigh.

Caleb chuckled.

"Well, you have to be a little patient for that. Okay, so... What do you wanna do?" he continued.

"I'd like to sleep, but... I can't..." she murmured.

Caleb knew what was coming next, so he smiled, but Hanna didn't continue, so he was the one who spoke.

"Do you want to sleep in the guest room with me?"

Hanna nodded without hesitation, even if not looking at him.

"Okay. Let's go, then." he said.

The pair made their way upstairs illuminated by the candle which Hanna was carrying, and then reached the guest room. When they arrived, Hanna immediately went under the blankets, placing the candle on the nightstand. Caleb, instead, took off his jeans and shirt and put on a pair of basketball shorts and another shirt which he had in his backpack, one larger and more comfortable. Then he got in the bed next to Hanna and, without she asked anything, he pulled her into a warm hug, both of them lying on their side, facing each other.

"How do you feel now?" he asked in a whisper.

"Better." Hanna whispered back.

Another loud thunder echoed outside and Caleb felt Hanna shiver. He kissed the top of her head and then blew out the candle on the nightstand, so it was totally dark.

"Why did you do it?" Hanna whispered, a little disappointed.

"We don't need it." he whispered back, as his hands rubbed her sides to keep her warm.

Hanna melted under his touch. The fact that she could hear his voice and feel his touch but couldn't see him was weird but someway she liked it. She could feel his presence, and that was the only thing which really mattered. She istinctively snuggled against his chest as Caleb continued caressing her, touching her, keeping her warm. She couldn't hear thunders anymore, just like the previous night. Caleb kissed the top of her head, then her forehead, then her temple. He couldn't see if she was blushing, if she was sleeping, if she was making faces or anything. But he _needed_ to kiss her, like everywhere. He hadn't done it for too long. Hanna, actually, loved the feeling of his lips against her skin, something she had definitely missed, like hell. He kept kissing her here and there, then he went down and placed another soft kiss on the tip of her nose, and then on her cheek. Hanna shyly put an arm under his back, rubbing it as well. She didn't know why she had done it, but maybe it was just her unconscious way of telling him that his cuddling was _really_ appreciated. At that, Caleb suddenly stopped. Hanna feared she had done something wrong, but she could still feel Caleb's hands on her sides, so maybe he had just fallen asleep.

But then, in the dark, she felt his breath right on her mouth. And then his hands moved from her sides to her cheeks, gently rubbing them with the thumbs. He was awake. And he was so damn close to her lips. His other fingers briefly touched her neck causing her a slight tickle. He then brushed one of his foot against one of her ankles. That was staring to kill Hanna. She just couldn't do anything. She was waiting for Caleb to go on.

"You're beautiful..." he suddenly whispered in the dark, and Hanna could feel his hot breath right against her lips.

"Yeah, well... It's all dark..." Hanna replied, chuckling slightly.

"I don't need to see. I know you are beautiful... Outside and inside." he whispered again.

Hanna was sure she was blushing. Caleb, then, moved one of his hands to her mouth. In the darkness, he traced the lines of her perfect fleshed lips with his index finger, and Hanna instinctively slightly parted them. Once again, he restarted kissing her everywhere on her face except for her lips. All of that was really driving Hanna crazy. Who cared about the tornado outside when she had a whole tornado right inside of her in that moment?

"Caleb..." she whispered in the total dark, frustrated.

Caleb replaced himself so that their mouths were basically touching and his hands were cupping her face gently.

"Hanna..." he replied softly, as if her name was the answer to everything.

Hanna swallowed as Caleb started rubbing his lips against hers, making them touch, but without kissing. He teased her like that for something that seemed an eternity to Hanna, but she neither asked him to stop, nor kissed him. She had to resist. And, well, she actually wanted it was him to kiss her and not the other way around, even if she was making a huge effort not to do it. But Caleb, then, suddenly stopped that torture and slightly rubbed the tip of his nose against hers. And then, finally, he placed a soft and chaste kiss on her lips. He pulled away immediately after, but he remained still close. Hanna loved the feeling of their lips together after all that time, even if it was brief and short. Then, she moved her hand from his back to his nape, scratching it slowly.

She wanted more.

Caleb knew it, and a stupid grin appeared on his face, even though Hanna couldn't see it because of the darkness. She didn't know if there were still thunders. Caleb was an excellent distraction of everything that surrounded her.

He kissed her lips quickly once again, and Hanna shivered. Caleb chuckled and hugged her tight, placing another small kiss on her neck. Hanna just let him hug her, glad that the darkness could hide her large smile. She didn't know what the hell they were doing between those sheets, she just knew that she liked it, _a lot_, whatever it was. When he dissolved the hug, he came back right in front of her face and kissed her again, this time for a few seconds longer than before. And when he pulled away, she decided to speak.

"Caleb, I–"

But he cut her off.

"Shhh..."

And then, another quick kiss, and then another one, and then another one, until they finally _really_ kissed there, in the bed, slowly, in the total darkness, with the loud noises of the storm which had now become just nothing. Caleb slightly lifted himself in the bed and gently pushed his tongue between Hanna's lips, and they finally tasted each other after so long. Their tongues tangled together, as Hanna's hand pushed Caleb's head by his nape onto the kiss, and his hands gently cupped her face. They continued to kiss that way in the dark, they didn't even know for how long. They kept playing with their lips, kissing each other to sleep, until both of them ended up sleeping, all cuddled up, their lips still touching.

* * *

**A/N: Hello beautiful people! Hope y'all are doing well :) I'm really sorry I can't update as often as I used to, but I have some absurd time schedules in college which are driving me crazy :( Anyway, here's your chapter... I hope it was worth the wait ;) Thank you to everyone who left a review, you guys make me happy... That's why I hope you'll leave another one to this chapter :D I'm curious to know what you think of this Haleb sweet moment ;) Let me know! And for who's waiting for the update to "Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen", I'm currently working on it (and also on the next chapter of "The Mall"), no worriesss ;) ..Love you guys! And, happy late Haleb-versary ;) #1105 -Atramea.**


	8. Chapter 8

As soon as Hanna opened her eyes, a smile appeared on her face. The dim light which filtered through the closed window of the guest room, illuminated Caleb's face as he kept sleeping. His face was right in front of hers, their noses were touching and their lips were very close. It was like they were sharing the breath. She could hear but also feel his light snoring, as he let out breaths Hanna felt a slight tickle on her face. She watched him sleeping carefully for a few seconds before remembering what had happened the previous night.

_She and Caleb had kissed._

Oh, they had _definitely_ kissed. To be totally honest, they had _made out _until the sleep had taken them away.

Suddenly, Hanna felt vulnerable. She had kissed Caleb, but she had done it surrounded by the darkness, and then she had just fallen asleep, without even remembering how long everything had actually lasted. It had been a particular moment: the storm, the cold, and then being in his same bed for the second night in a row had made her eventually give in. But it had really happened, and now she had to face the situation. She knew that Caleb would have probably wanted explanations about that, answers about how she felt about him, she knew it and it was legit too, but the truth is that she didn't know what to tell him. She knew that she had feelings for him, and well, she was always repeating that in her head not to admit that actually she _loved_ him, still, but she didn't want to be hurt a second time. She still feared he would have left again, and bearing that would have been too much for her. She trusted him, yeah, but she was too scared to lose him, again. So, she thought that she couldn't have lost him if she didn't take him back.

But a part of herself knew that even if she hadn't taken him back as her boyfriend, she was so attached to him that if he would have left in that moment, she would have suffered as hell anyway.

It was difficult to understand what was right and what was wrong, for now Hanna just kept watching him sleeping and enjoying the warmth of his arms around her waist. She had missed all of those things so much.

The storm seemed to be over. Hanna could hear the birds tweeting outside, but she wasn't sure if it was real or if it was just a feeling of hers. Maybe being that close to Caleb made her world look less bad, and even hearing birds when outside there actually was an aggressive tornado.

He looked so peacefully that she wanted to touch his face. She wanted to ran a hand through his now short hair and then stroke his cheek, just to feel his stubble under her fingertips. She wanted to snuggle against his chest, to take a deep breath with her nose buried in his cheap shirt, to kiss him good morning and God knows what else, but she knew that it was better just to look at him for now, at least until her mind was completely sure about what was right to do.

After a few minutes like that, Caleb started moving and mumbling something, and Hanna knew it was the signal that he was waking up, so she closed her eyes and pretended to be still asleep. She wasn't ready to face him after that night, and actually she would have never been.

When Caleb opened his eyes and found Hanna that close to him, he smiled too. For a second, he thought that all of those kisses had just been a dream, but then he saw Hanna's lipgloss all messed up around her mouth, so his smile just grew.

Strawberry. Same old taste. Same old Hanna.

He lifted one of his hands from her hip and moved it to her face, placing a strand of her hair behind her ear. Then, he moved his thumb across her lips trying to fix a little the lipgloss. She looked so beautiful. He thought to get out of bed and make her breakfast, but then he changed his mind. He remembered how much she was worried the previous day when she hadn't found him with her in the morning, so he decided to wait for her to wake up before anything. After all, it felt so nice to be in bed with her. It's not like he was doing a sacrifice. At all.

Hanna, still pretending to be asleep, knew that sooner or later she should have opened her eyes and faced him. He was clearly waiting for her to do it. She didn't know what would have been like to look into his eyes after what had happened a few hours earlier, but she had to take her responsabilities, so she just lifted her eyelids.

They crossed each other's gaze and Caleb immediately smiled at her. One of his arms was still wrapped around her waist, tracing her hip with his thumb. Hanna blinked a couple of times before returning that smile.

"Good morning..." Caleb whispered, his voice still hoarse from the sleep.

"Morning..." Hanna whispered back, pursing her lips.

"Looks like the tornado is gone for good. I think it's sunny outside, or at least is what I can see through that window. I guess the electricity is back as well." he told her, his arm still holding her.

"Yeah, probably. I'm gonna give a look..." she replied quickly, before trying to get out from his light grasp.

But Caleb pulled her back down by the wrist, and Hanna clumsily fell on the mattress, again with her face in front of his.

"Wait..." he whispered, not leaving her wrist.

Hanna stared at him and she felt a mixture of feelings forming into her stomach. He sighed and came even closer to her, enveloping her body into an embrace. He held her tight in his strong arms, burying his face into her hair as she relaxed into his safe hug, instinctively closing her eyes. He slided his right hand up and down her spine, reaching the hem of her old jumper before slipping his hand under its material to touch her smooth skin. Hanna slightly jumped at the feeling of his cold hand touching her bare back, but then his touch got her relaxed again.

"I missed this..." he whispered.

Hanna stayed silent as he kept rubbing her back, not knowing what to say — or to do either.

"What do you want for breakfast? I'm gonna cook." he continued.

"Um... I... I don't know, it's the same..." she stuttered, her voice muffled against his shirt.

"Princess... Whatever you want. Tell me, please. Anything."

Hanna felt a weird warmth into her chest as she heard her old nickname fall from his lips. She was blushing without a doubt, and she was glad he couldn't notice that. She tried to sound as everything was perfectly normal, but, honestly, what was normal when you're all cuddled up in bed with your former boyfriend after making out with him for most of the night?

"Bacon with eggs will be fine." she breathed out.

Caleb murmured a soft 'okay' as answer, but he didn't let her go.

"How did you sleep?" he asked then, as his hand rested on her back, rubbing circles with his thumb.

"Good." she replied, still trying to sound indifferent.

He slowly pulled away from her and moved away his hand from her back. He gave her a smirk as if he wanted to let her know that he was perfectly aware of the fact that she was embarassed as hell and not so indifferent like she was pretending to be. And the second her eyes met his smirk, she just laughed and, well, blushed, obviously.

"What?" she asked then, watching him raising his eyebrows along with smirking.

Caleb licked his lips and shook his head, shrugging.

"Nothing." he replied, as his smirk reappeared.

"Oh, nothing? Then why are you looking at me with that stupid face?" she asked.

"I've only got this face. Sorry."

She laughed again.

"You'd better go cooking my breakfast." she said then, smiling.

He bit his lip smiling, then nodded and got out of bed as Hanna did the same.

* * *

Caleb cooked her breakfast as promised, while she re-opened all the windows since it was sunny. The storm was over, and also the news confirmed that. The electricity was back too, so everything was back to normal. They ate in a comfortable silence, until the doorbell rang. Hanna saw who it was from the window before going to open, since Caleb in her house was still kind of a secret, except for the girls.

"It's just Spencer." Hanna said, walking to the door.

"Give me a second, I'll go downstairs..." Caleb replied, getting up from the chair.

"There's no need to. She knows."

"What? I thought we agreed on not telling anyone at least for now!"

Hanna shrugged.

"That's what I did. I didn't tell anyone. But... The –A's text of a couple of nights ago, the one which said that the house which allows tramps in would have blown up, well... I wasn't the only one who received it. Aria, Spencer and Emily received it too. So... It wasn't so difficult for them to guess what it really meant." she added.

Caleb processed her words and then nodded slightly, sitting back on his chair. Hanna went to answer the door before Spencer could ring the doorbell a second time.

"Hey, Spence!" the blonde greeted her friend.

"Hi. Is everything okay? Did you survive?" she asked chuckling.

"I guess so." Hanna laughed, making room to let Spencer in.

"Is Caleb here?" her friend asked then, whispering not to make him hear.

Hanna nodded quickly, blushing a little, then Spencer restarted speaking.

"Why are you blushing? Did something happen between you guys, maybe? You know that's nothing easier than having sex with an ex... Well, it's easier when he practically lives with you, and then it's cold, there's the storm, a threatening text arrives to your phone... And you guys are all alone in the house, and you go to sleep in his bed, and he hugs you, and—"

"Spencer, dammit, stop it! It didn't happen... _That_." Hanna interrupted her, still paying attention not to be loud.

"_That_? What do you mean? What happened then?" Spencer asked, raising both of her eyebrows.

"Spence, he's right there! And, look, we can go to him. He knows that you know and whatever. It's fine, okay? Can we just talk about that in another moment?" Hanna whispered, rolling her eyes.

Spencer shook her head and smirked deviously, then replied.

"Hanna... Tell me what happened... Now."

Hanna sighed and finally gave in.

"Okay, well... Last night, maybe, we... Uhm... We kissed."

Spencer smirked again.

"And... How was the kiss?" she whispered.

"Actually... We kissed, like... More than once." Hanna breathed out, blushing furiously.

Spencer widened her eyes and was about to say something, but Hanna went first.

"Look, it's awkward, because we're kinda pretending it didn't happen, we haven't talked about that yet... It just happened, we were in bed and it was dark... And the next thing I know is that I woke up this morning and his lips were still so close to mine, and I had all the lipgloss messed, and his arms were all around me, and—"

"Morning, Spencer. Want some bacon?" Caleb asked smiling, appaearing from the kitchen.

Hanna blushed even more, but luckily for her he hadn't been able to hear what she was saying since she was speaking really softly to Spencer. He had probably heard just a confused whispering between them.

"Hi, Caleb... No, thanks. I came just to see if you guys were okay after the tornado." Spencer replied, smiling.

"Oh... We were fine, after all. Actually, we were _very_ fine... Weren't we, Hanna?" he smiled towards Hanna.

Hanna raised her eyebrows at him but then nodded quickly, turning to Spencer, who hardly held back a laugh at that.

"Yeah... I'm sure about that. Well, then... I'll see you guys later, maybe. Bye." Spencer said, walking to the door.

Hanna turned to Caleb as Spencer closed the door behind her back.

"Did I say something wrong?" he asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking.

Hanna looked into his eyes and suddenly saw the same cocky guy who Caleb was when she first offered him her basement. The same guy who she had fallen in love with because of his teasing, his annoying ways and that stupid smirk of his. It was like being back in time. And, to be honest, it was a nice feeling.

"No, you didn't." she replied, as if it wasn't a big deal.

Caleb licked his lips and flashed her another pearled smirk before walking back to the kitchen, as Hanna sighed.

Was it possible to fall in love a second time with a guy who you actually never stopped loving?

Maybe it was.

Because it was happening to her.

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry if I made you guys wait a little for this, but there you go now :) I hope you all liked the chapter ;) And, omg, thank you so much for the reviews! You're amazing! It's such a pleasure to know you guys are enjoying the story! So, make sure to let me know what you guys think about this one :D What about Caleb being back to be the little bad cocky guy? Haha :) Happy Thanksgiving! Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	9. Chapter 9

After breakfast, Caleb studied for his exams and Hanna went to her toom to paint her nails and do other girly stuff, until she came back downstairs all dressed and with a flawless make-up on. Caleb looked at her and his jaw almost dropped, as Hanna blushed a little.

"I'm meeting the girls at the Brew. You need something or I'm free to go?" she asked him.

"You're beautiful." he said as an answer, smiling and biting the end of his pen.

Hanna rolled her eyes and bit her lip, turning on her heels.

"Hey, wait, wait, wait... Can I walk you there? It would be great if I can talk to Emily about some stuff for the Biology test..." he blurted out.

Hanna snorted, even if actually liked the idea of him walking her somewhere, like he was used to.

"Fine." she murmured.

"I'll be ready in a second." he promised, getting up from his chair and running upstairs.

He was quick as promised, so he grabbed the Biology book from the table and then the pair got out Hanna's house to reach the Brew. They decided for a walk since it was sunny and since they hadn't stayed outside in a few days because of the tornado. They didn't talk too much, they just occasionally made comments about the weather or the conditions of the streets after the violent storms. But both of them felt shivers through their bodies everytime that their hands accidentally brushed against each other while walking. Caleb had the strong desire to take her hand in his and interlace their fingers together, but he really didn't want to push her or make her feel uncomfortable, especially after all those kisses of the previous night. He just gave her a soft smile when it happened, which she returned, even though quickly and awkwardly.

* * *

They finally got into the Brew and Hanna immediately noticed that none of the girls had arrived yet. She sighed and walked towards a table, but Caleb gently grabbed her by an arm.

"Let's just take something while waiting." he said, nodding towards the bar counter.

Hanna nodded slightly and decided for a whipped cream coffee, and Caleb ordered a normal coffee. Obviously, he insisted to pay for both, then they sat at one of the tables waiting for the girls to come.

"So... I guess you all need to talk about the girl in Alison's grave... What was her name, again?" Caleb asked casually, taking a sip from his cup.

"Bethany. Bethany Young. Everything's just so confused right now..." Hanna muttered, taking a sip from his cup as well.

"And... How do you feel about her?"

"About who?"

"Alison. It must be very weird to have her back in your life..."

Hanna sighed and placed a strand of her hair behind her ear before replying.

"It is. Weird."

"Does she look changed at least? Or she's always the same bitch I've heard about?"

"Don't talk like that, Caleb." Hanna snapped.

"Hanna... That girl used to call you 'hefty Hanna' and make you throw up or am I wrong?"

Hanna sighed again and glanced up at him.

"She was my friend." she murmured, not sounding really sure.

"I bet she was." Caleb commented sarcastically, shaking his head slightly.

Hanna looked down at her lap an Caleb knew that the topic wasn't really nice.

"Well... You're right, this has nothing to do with me. I don't know her at all, I saw her just once the other night, so... Sorry. I didn't mean to be rude." he said meaningfully, waiting for her to look up at him.

Hanna did it and then gave him a small nod, before taking another sip of her coffee.

"And... About this morning... With Spencer... Maybe I shouldn't have been so..." he stuttered, smiling a little, before Hanna finished for him.

"Cocky? Yeah, actually you were."

Caleb let out a small laugh which became a real laugh when he saw that she was laughing too. The way her eyes sparkled when she laughed was so beautiful. He stayed lost in her eyes for a while before returning to his senses.

"I didn't lie, though. We were fine these last days, right?" he said then, almost in a whisper.

Hanna raised her eyebrows and looked away, nervously touching her hair. She was grateful when a guy approached their table with a big and friendly smile on his face. It was Lucas.

"Caleb Rivers? Is that really you?" he exclaimed, making his way to Caleb.

"Man! I haven't seen you in forever!" Caleb exclaimed back excitedly, standing up and giving Lucas a tight hug, tapping him on his back.

"I didn't know you were back! When was that? You moved to some place around here, right?" Lucas asked as they pulled away from the hug.

Caleb bit his lip thinking about Ravenswood, but then smiled widely at his old friend. He had been like a brother to him, after all.

"I've been here just for a few days. Uhm... I had to sort a couple of things out in another town, yeah, but now I'm back for good." he replied, shooting a look to Hanna at the end of his speech.

"Good." Lucas nodded, smiling.

Then something came up to his mind.

"Hey, do you have a place to stay, don't you?" he asked Caleb.

Hanna pursed her lips silently, as Caleb remained speechless for a moment, but then cleared his throat and replied.

"Yeah, yeah, man. Don't worry."

Then, Lucas looked at Hanna.

"Hey, Hanna. How are you doing?" he asked friendly.

"I'm good, thanks." Hanna replied, smiling.

Lucas looked from Hanna to Caleb, realizing the situation, and widened his eyes.

"Oh... Did I interrupt something, maybe?" he asked, scratching awkwardly the back of his neck.

"Nothing." Caleb replied quickly, shaking his head.

Lucas glanced at Hanna and saw her uncomfortableness, then smirked.

"I bet you're back together, right?" he said.

For what he knew, Hanna was with Travis, but he had a feeling that she could have immediately broken up with him as soon as Caleb had been back. Hanna blushed furiously and lowered her gaze, as Caleb just scratched his head.

"Ahem... No, actually, we're just having coffee together, you know..." Caleb stuttered, but he didn't want to say that they were _friends_, because it seemed like the biggest lie of the world to him.

Damn, friends don't make out in bed. Friends don't blush when their hands accidentally brushed against each other. Friends don't act the way he and Hanna were acting. They weren't friends. He really didn't know how to define their current relationship, but he knew that they _definitely_ weren't friends. And Hanna knew it too.

Lucas raised his eyebrows at Caleb like he wanted to tell him that he knew that he was staying at her place and like he could perfectly feel all the sexual tension right there, but then nodded.

"Yeah, okay. Sorry for disturbing, though. I gotta go. Nice to see you again, Caleb. Hanna!" he said, and with that he had walked away.

Caleb opened his mouth to say something, but then Emily and Alison came to the table.

"Hey, guys." Emily smiled, approaching them.

"Oh, hey, Emily. I was waiting for you, need to ask you something." Caleb said, standing up from his seat with the Biology book.

He came up to Emily and started showing her something on the book, so Alison sat on the now free chair across Hanna.

"So he's the famous Caleb, right?" she whispered to her, raising her eyebrows.

Hanna pursed her lips and shrugged as way of answer.

"When I first saw him the other night, with all that happened, I didn't have the chance to notice how cute he is. Nice way to lose your virginity, Han." Alison continued, giving her a wink.

"Ali, stop." Hanna snapped, shooting her a deadly glance.

"What? I can't express an opinion?"

"Caleb is not 'a way to lose the virginity'. And I'd just rather not talk about him, okay?"

Alison nodded slowly, with a smirk plastered on her face. Then, Emily and Caleb returned closer to the table.

"Okay, I'll leave you guys alone. See you later." Caleb said, looking at Hanna while saying 'see you later'.

"Thanks for the coffee." Hanna smiled softly at him.

Caleb smiled back and was about to leave, but Alison said something.

"You can stay. After all, you're Hanna's _roommate_, right?"

Yeah, even Ali had received that damn text.

"I need to study. Thanks though." Caleb replied without a problem, smiling one last time before leaving.

Hanna sighed and roamed a hand though her hair.

"Can we just wait for Aria and Spencer without talking about Caleb staying in my house, please?" she said, frustrated.

Emily smiled at her, a genuine smile unlike Ali's devious smirk, but they all eventually avoided the topic.

* * *

**A/N: Finally I can update this :) Even if it's just a filling chapter... I'll try to update more often now that I'm on holiday, though ;) As usual, a big thanks to you guys for all the reviews, PMs and whatever and also for being so patient with me :) I had college stuff and then I did some Christmas shopping, so... Now I managed to update ;) Honestly I wanted a scene between Lucas and Caleb on the show when he came back, so I wrote it here :) I'm glad you find the previous chapter sweet btw... I love Haleb teasing, can't help it :D So, a guest asked me for a Tyshley story... Of couRse I'm totally in love with them -honestly, how could you not be?- and I actually already wrote something about them but never published it, so... It's possible I will sooner or later :P:P Haha! ...I'm gonna update "The Mall" soon too :) Love you guys, merry HoHo! xx -Atramea.**


	10. Chapter 10

It was late when Hanna came back home. She had texted Caleb throughout the day alerting him that she wasn't going to be home either for lunch or for dinner, busy talking with –A stuff and everything else with the girls. They all had eaten at Spencer's after spending the whole morning in the Brew. Caleb had taken advantage of the loneliness to study, even if he had also visited Lucas at some point of the day, because the guy had called him after their meeting in the morning. Now it was ten in the evening, and Caleb was sprawled on the couch watching a boring basketball match.

That was the last night that he was going to be able to sleep in the guest room since Ashley was going to be back the next day from her business trip.

Hanna opened the front door snorting, clearly tired and probably bothered by all the talk with the girls. It wasn't like they usually talked about simply and typical teenagers troubles, anything. It was stressful, most of the times. She came in the living room and Caleb greeted her with one of his charming smiles.

"Hey." he said, nodding his head towards her.

"Hey." Hanna replied almost in a groan, climbing on the couch next to him.

"Is everything okay?" he asked concerned, moving his eyes away from the screen and turning completely to her.

"Everything's a mess, as always." she shrugged, staring absent-mindendly at the TV screen.

He remained silent for a few seconds, pursing his lips.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" he asked.

Hanna sighed and licked her lips, as he followed it with his eyes.

"Not really." she murmured in response, quickly slipping off her five inches and then lying her legs across Caleb's lap.

Caleb didn't make any more pressure, but a smile crossed his lips at the easy way in which Hanna made herself comfortable on the couch. And he couldn't help but rest his hands on her smooth legs, left exposed by the not really long dress which she was wearing that day. They watched TV for a while in those same positions, without saying anything.

"Have you eaten something?" Hanna asked after a while, turning her gaze to him.

"Yeah, I made a sandwich." he replied, rubbing his hand on one of her legs.

"And are you ready for tomorrow's tests?"

Caleb smirked.

"Of course I am." he added cockily.

Hanna made a face and then reached for the remote, switching channel without asking for permission.

"Uhm... I was watching, you know." Caleb said, as on the screen appeared an episode of _Gossip Girl_.

"Oh yeah? And since when you like basketball? You don't even know the difference between Lakers and Celtics." she snapped, turning up the volume.

Caleb opened his mouth to reply, but he eventually didn't. After all, she was kinda right, basketball wasn't really one of his interests. She knew him too well.

"Okay, but... _Gossip Girl_? Seriously? Nothing better?" he said then.

Hanna hit his knee with her left heel.

"Shut up. This is one of my favorite episodes. I watched it like seven times..." she replied quickly.

"So why are you watching it again?"

"Shut up!" Hanna snapped once again, glaring at him with a surprising seriousness in her eyes.

Caleb sighed and rolled his eyes, giving in. He stayed on the couch with Hanna's legs lazily sprawled on his lap, silent, occasionally rubbing his hands on her soft skin. It just came up naturally, spontaneously. And Hanna didn't seem bothered about that, at all. Plus, she was the one who created that situation.

Hanna needed to relax. She was tired of listening Alison trying to win back her queen-bee role, all of her lies about her kidnapping, and she was tired of –A's games too. It just felt nice to come back home and find Caleb waiting for her with his usual smile plastered on the lips, and when she had felt the need to feel his closure she hadn't stopped herself. Caleb was a nice way to end her day. She could throw away her problems and stop thinking for a while, relaxing under Caleb's familiar touch.

When the episode ended, Caleb turned to Hanna and saw her eyes lost in the screen. She was clearly not paying attention at her 'favorite episode'. Caleb sighed and gently patted his hand on her thigh.

"So... Are you gonna tell me what's wrong?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Hanna looked into his eyes and shook her head.

"Honestly? Basically everything. I tried not to think about that, but the truth is that there's still this part of me who would never have wanted Alison to come back. But now she's here and I just..." she replied, ending with a huge sigh.

Caleb sighed as well and offered a hand to her. She looked at him confused, but then she grabbed it and Caleb pulled her closer to him, making her lift from her lying position until he could envelope her tiny body into an hug. He held her and placed his chin on top of her head. She was practically sitting on his lap now.

"It's understandable, Han. She never made you feel comfortable for what I know. It's clear that her unexpected return is causing like a drop of your stabilities." he whispered.

Hanna didn't say anything but let him hug her, and it was better to be into his arms, actually.

"If you need anything, you know I'm here." he added then.

Hanna nodded briefly against his chest, and then pulled away a little to look into his eyes. Caleb gave her a small smile, and then Hanna didn't understand anything more. She just knew that she was attracted by his lips in a totally strong way, and then she kissed him like it was the last thing she could do in her life. She saw in him everything she needed at that moment, and she just let herself go, kissing him hard, without hesitation, parting his lips with her tongue and exploring his mouth. Caleb was more than surprised, but he kissed back as strong as he could, gripping her thighs as she pulled at his hair. They went on for a few minutes. Hanna didn't think about anything, while Caleb thought about everything. He thought that it felt so nice, so right, so good...and then it felt so weird, so random, so wrong. He suddenly pulled away, the taste of strawberry still into his mouth. They were both flushed and breathing heavily, and Hanna attempted to kiss him again, but he gently placed two of his fingers aganist her lips.

"Wait..." he panted, biting his bottom lip.

Hanna looked at him confused, as he took a deep breath and continued.

"We can't keep doing this, Han."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't keep being here, so close to you, kissing you randomly knowing that you're not ready to take me back yet. It's wrong. You need space and time, and I think that acting like this, well... We're just messing with your thoughts, and I don't want you to be confused about me. We shouldn't play with our own feelings. I want you to trust me again, I don't want you to think that I'm just having fun with you. I shouldn't have accepted to stay in your basement, I knew it was a bad idea from the first day."

Hanna moved away from his lap and looked at him, more confused than before.

"Caleb... I don't get it." she murmured.

"Look, I could have acted like the cocky guy I once was and just take advantage of you and your instincts towards me, but I don't want to. I don't want you to do things that you're gonna regret. I want you to be sure, I want you to kiss me and be with me only when you're ready to give us another try. Last night was wonderful, and _this_ was wonderful too, but... But I thought about what happened, today, and... And I feel like we're doing the wrong thing, Hanna. I'm willing to wait for you, okay? And I will. The thing is that I don't want to play any games with you. The time I spent away from here made me realize how much you're important to me, and I'm telling you this right because of that. We should take our distances until you make up your mind."

Hanna looked at him and then sighed deeply, moving her gaze away.

"I'm pretty sure _you_ kissed me last night, or am I wrong? What the fuck is your problem, Caleb?" she snapped then, suddenly.

"Maybe is the fact that I... I-I love you."

Hanna returned to look into his eyes and swallowed hard. There were some seconds of silence before Caleb broke it again.

"Today I saw Lucas. I mean, after this morning at the Brew. I spoke to him and he said I can stay at his place for a while."

Hanna furrowed her eyebrows and turned to him.

"What?" she asked.

"I can't stay here, Han... And I told you why. I'll go crazy if we're gonna keep doing this, and I'm not sure if I can avoid it."

"You can stay until you'll find a place on your own. You don't need to go somewhere else right now. You know you can stay here as long as you need to, Caleb."

Caleb sighed and rubbed the palms of his hands against his own thighs.

"Again, I don't think that's a good idea."

Hanna laughed sarcastically.

"How funny. You kissed me and teased me and everything, and now you gave me an ultimatum. Like... I haven't been able to take you back yet, so, since you're tired of waiting, you just leave and go somewhere else. Yeah, seems really good. And then what? I'll give you a ring saying _'Hey, Caleb! I'm ready! Come over and let's have make up sex!'_? Seriously?" she snapped, shaking her head at him.

Caleb sighed and looked down.

"I think that having me away will help you to clear your ideas." he murmured softly.

"Don't you think you've already been away from me for enough time?"

That made him feel Caleb like a total douchebag.

"I'm sorry, Hanna. But, really, I think—" he started, but Hanna harshly cut him off.

"Look, stop. I got it. You could have just told me that you weren't interested."

She got up but Caleb grabbed her by the arm.

"You really think that? Then why did I come back here in Rosewood? Who do I have here? My family? No. My friends? No. I have _you_, Hanna. _I love you. _It's always been you. I just care too much about you to risk that you're gonna be hurt by me... Again." he said earnestly.

"Well, it doesn't look like you love me if while we're making out you stop to tell me that you're going to move out."

"What about cuddling with you to make you sleep at night? What about watching _Gossip_ Lame _Girl _with you while rubbing your legs trying to make you relax? What about... What about everything we've been through? I never stopped loving you, Hanna. Look into my eyes and tell me that I'm lying now."

Hanna bit hard on her lower lip amd stared at him intensely. She didn't understand him, but she could tell he was honest. Maybe he was really doing that for her.

"Well... Okay, I believe you. But... I don't agree with you. I think that your closure is what is helping me to make up my mind, so... Even if I'm still too scared to make us a thing again, well... I'm asking you to stay. I don't want to take any distance, okay? I know you're not playing with me. I know _you_. So... Can you just do what you want to do without worrying that much about me? Can we just live everything as it comes?" she stated slowly.

Caleb couldn't help but smile sofly.

"You won't change your mind, will you?" he shrugged.

"So..." Hanna whispered, sitting back on his lap, straddling him.

Caleb swallowed as Hanna kissed down his jawline.

"Hanna... Are you su—" he tried to say, but Hanna shut him up planting a kiss on his lips.

"Stop asking. And stop thinking." she added, rubbing the tip of her nose against his before kissing him again.

It was so much more eager than the previous kisses, and Hanna's hands went immediately to unbotton his shirt. She needed him, that night. But as soon as Caleb started letting his hand roam on her curves too, finally convinced, the front door opened suddenly. Both of them, luckily, heard that and immediately recomposed themselves, before Ashley Marin entered the living room, finding Hanna and Caleb sat next to each other on the couch with the TV playing the nth episode of _Gossip Girl_.

"Mom? I thought you were gonna come back tomorrow..." Hanna asked, standing up awkwardly.

Ashley pulled her into a tight hug.

"Honey, are you okay? Did the tornado scare you? Oh my God, I was so afraid..." she said, holding her.

Caleb stood up, shoving his hands on the pockets of his jeans as Hanna reassured her mother.

"Caleb... Long time no see, huh?" Ashley said then, slowly pulling away from the hug.

Caleb motioned a shy smile and nodded towards her.

"Yeah, yeah... Nice to see you again, Ashley." he murmured.

"Same here." Ashley replied, smiling.

There was an awkward silence for a few seconds, before Hanna spoke again.

"Caleb had dinner here. I had to help him to study, he has some make-up tests tomorrow to come back to school."

Ashley nodded, looking from Hanna to Caleb, slowly.

"So I guess you're back for good, Caleb?" she asked then.

Caleb took a deep breath and then nodded.

"Yes." he said, making another little smile.

Ashley nodded again.

"Well... They've let us come home earlier, so I took the first flight. Now I'm totally exhausted, though. I think I'll go to bed. Do you guys mind?" she said then.

"Of course not. I'm going home soon too." Caleb shrugged.

Hanna nodded next to him.

Ashley smiled with the corner of her mouth like she knew that they weren't telling her the truth, but she pretended to believe them. Honestly, she was happy to find Caleb home with Hanna instead of Travis.

"Goodnight guys." she concluded, heading upstairs.

Hanna and Caleb replied to her goodnight and then waited for her to close the bedroom door before speaking again.

"Holy crap." Hanna growled under her breath.

"Is there any risk for her to get in the guest room? There's my stuff all around the room and the bed is like a mess." Caleb asked.

"She never goes there if there aren't guests. And she thinks there are no guests, so... No, there's no risk. It's not like she goes to check... She just cleaned the room sometimes, but she doesn't do it at this time of the day."

Caleb let out a deep breath and nodded slightly.

"I'd better go to the basement now. And when she'll be out tomorrow, I'll recollect all my stuff from the guest room." he added.

"I'll think about it, don't worry. She doesn't have work tomorrow because she was supposed to be still away, but we have school. I know her timing, I'll fix everything."

"Okay." Caleb agreed.

"Okay." Hanna repeated, smiling.

She came closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing his lips gently. Caleb, then, looked down at her and smiled back.

"Goodnight, princess." he whispered.

"Goodnight." she replied.

And then, she pulled away, letting Caleb go down to the basement. She went upstairs glad that her mother was already in her room, and she slipped into bed.

She didn't think about Alison or –A. Now the only thought was Caleb.

Her mobile was on the nightstand.

She had an idea.

She smirked.

* * *

**A/N: Pretty intense chapter :) Hope y'all enjoyed it. And I hope you guys could understand Caleb's reasons against the kiss, even if he eventually gave in :P Love is love ;) Thank you to all of you who reviewed last time. Glad you liked Caleb+Lucas scene. Let me know if you enjoyed this chapter as well :) This story's almost over btw, along with "The Mall" (the epilogue of that is almost ready) :) I'll try new storylines then ;) So guys... Wish you an amazing and happy new year! May love be always on your way! Happy 2015! Love you! xx -Atramea.**


	11. Chapter 11

The sun filtered through the window of Hanna's room laid on her closed eyes. It was enough to make her open them. She blinked once, twice, then lifted one of her hands to rub them. The first thing she saw was the alarm on her nightstand. It was almost time to wake up for school. She groaned and tried to get up, but _something_ stopped her. She looked down, and she realized she was naked. Like, _completely_ naked. And as she looked lower, she saw an arm wrapped around her waist. She was still a little confused from the sleep, but as soon as she took sight of the arm, she remembered everything, and smiled. Then, she became aware of a warm body pressed against her back, lovingly spooning her. And when she saw their clothes shattered all around the room, she let out a slight chuckle.

_Shit_.

Her mom was right there, in the opposite room.

Caleb needed to get out of the room immediately.

She knew that the idea of having sex with her mom two steps away from them was awful, but she just hadn't been able to control herself. Last night, after saying goodnight to Caleb and climbing in bed as he climbed on the basement couch, she had texted him, telling him he absolutely needed to come to her room. He had panicked, thinking that something bad had happened, something about –A maybe, and he had rushed to her room very scared.

But he surely didn't expect to find her standing near the bed wearing nothing.

_Naked_.

He knew too that the idea of having sex with Ashley in the same house was terrible, but he really hadn't been able to think while a very naked Hanna was kissing him and pushing him towards her bed. They had obviously locked the door, and then had managed to smother their moans, sometimes with kisses or bites and sometimes having to cover each other's mouths with their hands. They had also had to pay attention to the headboard of the bed, not making it smash against the wall.

Maybe it was because of the fear of being caught by her mother, maybe it was because it hadn't happened in a while, maybe it was because Caleb had gotten hotter while being away, but Hanna just knew that it had been absolutely amazing.

When they had been done, Caleb had started getting dressed, but Hanna told him to stay with her for the night. She was starting to get used to sleep in his same bed, so she had pleaded him not to come back to the basement. He had hesitated. He knew that they had already been lucky not being caught by Ashley, so he didn't want to be caught naked in bed with her daughter in the morning either, of course. But he had eventually given in –Hanna had always been able to be really persuasive with him– saying that he needed to get up early to get out of there.

But he didn't get up early. He was still sound asleep against Hanna's back.

She rolled over and lightly shook him.

"Caleb, you need to wake up, like, now." she whispered.

Caleb groaned.

"Go away..." he mumbled, twisting between the sheets.

"Caleb, c'mon! You have two exams this morning and my mother soon will come here! Get dressed and get out of here, seriously!"

"Five minutes more..."

Hanna then sighed and slapped him hard on the chest.

"Fucking hell!" he yelled.

"Shhhh! We did the impossible not to make my mom hear us last night and you want to get caught now?" Hanna shushed him.

At least he was awake now.

"Oh my God, what time is it?" Caleb finally asked, getting out of the bed and then picking up his clothes from the floor.

"Let's say that in five minutes my mom will be here to check if I'm ready for school." Hanna replied, starting to get dressed as well.

"Shit. That was an awful idea."

Hanna smirked.

"Not really..." she added seductively, watching the several lovebites on his shoulders.

Caleb couldn't help but chuckle a little, without stopping what he was doing.

"Don't get me wrong, it was amazing. But maybe we'd better avoid to do it again with your mother in the next room." he whispered, titling his head to side.

Hanna smiled and nodded, as the two finished getting dressed. Then, Hanna unlocked the door to see if the coast was clear.

"Okay, if we wait one second more we're probably dead. Good luck for your exams. Go now." she whispered then.

Caleb smiled and kissed her quickly on the lips.

"I'll see you later. I think we need to discuss this _thing_, and—" he tried to say, but Hanna cut him off and shoved him outside the room.

"Whatever. Now go!" she added.

Caleb then left the house, luckily without being caught.

Hanna thought it was strange that her mother hadn't come to check her yet, so she tiptoed to her room and slightly opened the door, which was ajar. Ashley was sound asleep. Hanna was almost scared because it wasn't typical of her mother to sleep in, but she could tell she was breathing. It was just tiredness, from the work trip, of course. Hanna thanked her lucky stars, so she took advantage of her mother's condition to go to the guest room and recollect all of Caleb's stuff and move it to the basement. When she was done, she went to the kitchen to have breakfast and then exited the house, reaching her car and driving to school.

* * *

"Where's Ali by the way?" Aria asked.

The four girls were sitting at their usual spot. It was the break. Hanna was looking around herself, trying to spot Caleb. She wanted to ask him about his exams and she didn't want to press him texting him. And yeah, she was also thinking about their crazy night.

"Don't look at me. I don't know." Emily shrugged.

"She's probably talking with Hackett or some teacher." Spencer added.

"Yeah, probably. Anyway, we need to find out more about Bethany. Honestly guys, do you trust Ali when she says she didn't know her?" Aria continued.

Spencer sighed deeply.

"I don't know. It's kind of weird. This whole thing is really, really weird." she said then.

"Why would she lie to us? We're the only people who still have her back!" Emily protested lightly.

"Em, I don't know. But c'mon, you seriously didn't ask yourself if she's telling us all the truth?" Spencer replied.

Emily sighed and leaned against her seat.

"Han? Are you here with us or...?" Aria asked then.

"Uhm, what?" Hanna replied, shaking quickly her head.

Aria raised her eyebrows.

"What are you thinking?" she asked.

"Nothing." Hanna replied hastily.

Spencer nudged her.

"Something about Caleb, isn't it?" she asked her friend, chuckling.

"No." Hanna snapped.

"Well, then... How is your cohabitation going?" Emily teased.

Hanna snorted loudly.

"Spencer told you, didn't she?" she asked then, referring to her and Caleb's kiss of a couple of days –well, nights– before.

"Don't be mad. It was predictable. I mean, being under the same roof with your ex, with your mother away, with a tornado outside and the electricity gone..." Aria smirked.

"Okay, actually I was thinking about him, yeah." Hanna confessed then.

"As if we didn't know." Emily rolled her eyes.

"Got some news for us?" Spencer asked teasingly.

Hanna took a deep breath. Maybe it was going to be a relief to tell them about _that_.

"My mom... She came back earlier from her work trip. She was supposed to come back today, but... She came back last night. Caleb was there, of course. We were... Uhm... On the couch, kinda making out..." she stammered, blushing.

"Did she catch you guys?" Aria asked widening her eyes.

"No, she didn't. We managed to stop before she came in the room. I told her Caleb was there because he needed some help for his exams, and she believed me, so she went straight to bed because she was tired as hell. Then, Caleb went to the basement and I went upstairs to my room to sleep, but..." she continued.

"But?" Spencer asked, smirking.

Hanna smiled and bit her lower lip.

"Okay, guys. I'm just gonna say it without too many words. After that, I texted him saying he needed to come in my room immediately. He did it, and he found me there waiting for him..._naked_. I guess I can stop telling you here, right?" she blurted out.

"Wait, wait, wait... Are you saying that you guys did _it_ with your mother right in the next room?" Spencer exclaimed.

Hanna made her a face to signal her to lower her voice. Aria and Emily were staring at her with wide eyes as well. Hanna just shrugged, blushing. The three girls laughed incredulous, and she blushed even more.

"Please don't say anything." she murmured, covering her face with both of her hands.

"There's really nothing to say, Han." Aria giggled.

"So... You two are back together, then?" Emily asked.

Hanna sighed and the smile fell from her lips.

"He wants to, but... I'm not sure." she said then.

"But... Do you love him, don't you?" Aria asked.

Hanna nodded slowly.

"Of course I do. It's just that... Last night we had sort of a fight before ending up making love, because he told me he didn't want to be like friends with benefits. As in, kissing and doing some kind of things randomly without discussing our situation. He'd want me to tell him that I'm ready to seriously get back together with him. He still wants this answer, especially after last night. I wish it was that easy to take that decision... It's just that after he left for Ravenswood, I... I'm scared he would leave again. When he did then, we were fine, it wasn't like our relationship had problems. So he could do it again, anytime. He's back now, yeah, but who can assure me that he won't leave again? I couldn't handle all that pain again." she explained, her voice shaky.

Spencer sighed, took Hanna's hand in hers and then spoke.

"No one can assure you that. But it's clear that he loves you and that you love him. Hanna... If he left right now, even if you guys are not together, you'd be upset anyway. I know that make your thing 'official' again represents a step to you, kind of a proof of complete trust, okay, but I think Caleb has clearly shown you that he feels really bad for the whole Ravenswood thing, coming back and staying even though you were with another guy. And he also told you that he didn't want the random relationship with you. This is admirable, honestly. It means that he doesn't wanna hurt you, never again. In my opinion, he's doing anything to win your trust back. He's doing anything to try to put the pieces of the puzzle back together. It's up to you if he's worth your trust again or not, but... You do have to recognize that he's truly fighting for it."

_'She definitely has a point'_ Hanna thought. Then she nodded slowly, smiling weakly at her friend. The moment was interrupted by Alison coming to their table.

"Sorry, I was stopped by someone." she breathed out, glancing at Hanna.

"Like?" Aria asked.

"Hanna's bad boy." Alison snapped.

"Caleb? What did he tell you?" Hanna asked, surprised.

"It doesn't matter. He's a loser, anyway. No offense, Han, but I thought you could find someone better than that." Alison continued.

Hanna shook her head and bit her lip.

"You don't know him. Don't you dare talking about him like that." she told her.

"Or what?" Alison snapped back, almost enjoying their little exchange of words.

"Stop it, Ali. Caleb's a good guy, Hanna's right." Spencer got in the discussion.

Hanna breathed out slowly and then took sight of Caleb behind Aria's shoulders.

"I have to go." she announced then, giving one last look at Alison before grabbing her purse and walking to him.

* * *

**A/N: Hi everybody! Sorry for the late! I didn't have much time for writing lately, hopefully I'll have more in the next days. I read your reviews, and you seriously couldn't imagine how you make me happy :):) Thank you so so so much, seriously :) Now, a couple of things: I don't know how many chapters are left for this story, maybe I'll manage to end it by chapter 15 or something, and about my other Haleb story still not complete, well, I think there's just a last chapter left. Then, when both of them will be over, I think I'm gonna start the sequel of "The Mall" as many of you asked me. And maybe some new storylines as well. But I want to finish my current ffs first. I want to try something new...don't get me wrong, I love all my stories, but at some point it's right to end them before losing the inspiration and leaving them without a proper ending ;) I hope you're happy about the news :) About this chapter, well, I'm sorry if I skipped the smut part, but I thought that it worked like this :) (plus this story is rated T... If I start writing a Haleb hot moment I'm not sure I can keep it under the rating standards, haha :D) ...Hope you enjoyed it anyway :) I'm curious to find out your thoughts about what Caleb told Alison, the Haleb situation, Spencer's advice...well, everything :) Feel free to tell me anything, I appreciate it :) I'll try to update soon! (oh, expect a Tyshley one-shot of mine, sooner or later! :P) ...Love you guys, thanks for your amazing support! xx -Atramea. **


	12. Chapter 12

"What did you say to Alison?" Hanna growled when she reached Caleb.

"Hello to you too." he replied sarcastically, raising his eyebrows.

"Caleb."

He rolled his eyes and then glanced to Alison, behind Hanna's shoulders.

"She was the one who spoke to me first, actually. She wanted to know... _Things_ about you." he said.

Hanna crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows.

"What kind of things, exactly?" she asked.

Caleb licked his lips and lightly shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. I made her understand that I don't really like her, so..." he replied then.

"Well, I want to know!"

"Hanna... You need to understand that what she says or does is not the most important thing. It's not like you, Spencer and Aria are her puppets, okay? From my point of view this is not friendship. It wasn't friendship when she was, uhm, _dead_, and it's not friendship now either. She's just a fucking bitch who thinks she can rule the world. But she's wrong, okay? You guys need to stop caring about her that much."

"Why would you say that? You barely know her!"

"Yeah, maybe. But I can recognize some kind of people from a thousand miles. I don't like her at all and I don't like you to be around her. That's it."

Hanna took a deep breath and scratched her head.

"Ali's been through a lot, okay? She's always been kind of a bitch, yeah, but she used to love each one of us and I think that she still does. Even if it doesn't look like that..." she murmured.

"Listen, Hanna... I don't care, okay? You're right, I don't know her, and we already discussed this at the Brew yesterday. I just don't like her, but I can't forbid you to be friends with her. I guess I'll get over it, even if I think that I'll always keep an eye on her... Anyway, look, I don't wanna talk about Alison."

Hanna nodded and pursed her lips.

"Okay, fine. Uhm... What about your exams? Everything okay?" she asked then, with a little smile.

Caleb smiled back.

"I'll have to wait for the results, but I think I made it. And... I have to thank you." he replied.

"No, you don't. I just—"

"You helped me, Han. Seriously. You gave me a place to stay, _again_, you helped me with Spanish, and... You helped me even in some _other_ ways, too." he cut her off, smirking.

Hanna blushed.

"Everything okay with mommy this morning, by the way?" Caleb asked, chuckling.

"Oh, yeah, she... She was still asleep when I left for school. I guess she's still really tired... I moved all of your things back down to the basement. It's everything okay."

"Yeah... We were lucky she was that tired..."

Hanna bit her lip and blushed again.

"Hey... We need to talk... About... _That_." Caleb whispered, taking her hands in his.

Hanna felt sparkles when he did so, and she suddenly became nervous as hell.

"Not here, Caleb." she whispered.

"Let me guess... You don't want Alison to look at us."

Hanna sighed.

"No, it's just that... We're at school, and..." she stuttered.

"You never cared shoving your tongue down my throat being right here at school from what I remember, why would you feel uncomfortable just talking, then?" he replied, raising his eyebrows.

Hanna stayed silent, nervously shifting on her position.

"Fine, we'll talk later if you want." Caleb stated then, sighing.

"Thanks." Hanna murmured, giving him a small smile.

"Go back to your friends. I'll see you at home."

Hanna nodded and was about to go back to the table, but then she turned back to Caleb. She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned closer to him, placing her head against his chest, as he hugged her back, kissing the top of her head. For a moment she just thought about how much she had missed just being able to hug him during the lunch break at school. She inhaled deeply on his shirt, breathing all his cologne, and then lifted her head and smiled at him.

"I'll see you at home." she repeated, slowly unwrapping her arms from his body.

"Okay. Oh... Can you just tell Emily to stop by the Chemistry lab before the break is over? I just want to ask her something, and I don't really feel like coming over there right now."

Hanna looked at him confused, but nodded. Only then, Caleb let her go, giving her a small wink.

Hanna walked back to the table, watching Caleb going back inside with the corner of her eye. She sat back at her spot, as her four friends stared at her.

"Em, stop by the Chemistry lab later. Caleb wants to talk with you about something." she announced.

"Couldn't he just come over here?" Alison snapped.

"No, he couldn't. He can't stand you." Hanna snapped back.

"I never thought I would have had troubles with your boyfriend, Han." Alison shook her head, half-laughing.

"Caleb's not..." Hanna started, but then regretted it.

He wasn't her boyfriend, but... Well, maybe it wasn't official again, but... Yeah, well, he was _kind of _her boyfriend.

"Yeah, right. He's not your boyfriend. Then you don't mind about that someone who made him all of those hickeys all over his neck, right?" Alison continued, smirking.

Hanna snorted and grabbed her purse, standing up.

"I'll go back to class." she announced.

* * *

Hanna could finally see Caleb again late that day, when her mom left after dinner. Only then, she went down to the basement, bringing a sandwich to Caleb. She knocked on the door and Caleb's voice allowed her in, then she walked down the stairs and joined him on the couch.

"Hey. Sorry, I came here as soon as I could." she smiled, handing him the plate with the sandwich.

"No problem. Thanks for this." he replied, placing the table on the small coffee table near the couch.

"So..." Hanna started, not sure about where to address their conversation.

"Hanna, I asked Emily not to tell you what I needed to talk to her about today, because I wanted to tell you. Well, I... I heard they needed some help at the Brew, so... She said it was true, and that I could come there to talk with Zack about that. Emily said she was going to put on a good word for me. And... I stopped there earlier, and Zack told me I can start tomorrow. I think I found a job." he said.

Hanna stayed silent for a moment, processing Caleb's words in her mind.

"That's amazing, Caleb!" she exclaimed then, smiling.

"Yeah. I... I want to buy an apartment here. Of course, I need some money help anyway and I'll ask my mom for that, but I wanted to earn something on my own not to make her pay me the whole thing. So... I thought it would have been good to work at the Brew."

"You want to buy an apartment here?" Hanna sounded surprised.

After all, Caleb had no one in Rosewood beside her. All of his relatives were in California, and that was the senior year. Buying an apartment right now was a serious commitment, even because college was almost on their ways.

"Yeah. I don't want to take advantage of you, or Lucas, or anyone else. I want to stay in Rosewood, so I need my place, right? I don't care if I'll use it just for a few months, I like the idea of always having a place here, a place where I can come back whenever I want to. It could become one of my brothers' place in the future... Or even... _Our_ place... Someday. Like... Mine and yours. Who knows." he replied, smiling.

Hanna couldn't help but smile back at him. It definitely was one of the cutest thing someone had ever told her.

"You really see us together in a five or ten years time?" she asked, still smiling.

"Always." he replied without hesitation.

Hanna didn't know what to say. They stayed just staring at each other for a while, then Caleb took a deep breath and broke the silence.

"So... What about you? Do you see a chance for us? Are you...ready to try one more time?"

Hanna bit her lip and looked at the floor. Caleb swallowed hard and patiently waited until Hanna lifted her gaze and looked up at him.

"Caleb... There were moments when I really thought I was never going to see you again. Because... I thought it just wasn't meant to be. Having you in my life had been a huge treat, and I couldn't complain that I wasn't going to be able to see you again, because I had had you. I had had the best moment on my life with you, and I just had to get over it, to accept that they weren't going to be back because I had lost you. But someway I was happy because anyway I had met you. I had understood what love was thanks to you." She stopped to take a breath and then continued. "And then you came back. And... I just... I didn't understand anything. I was confused, but... In my heart, I've always known that having you back was the best thing that I could've asked for. I love you, Caleb. I never stopped. It's not like you can erase some kind of things from your heart, you know... And... You're back in my life now. I spent these days with you, trying to understand if I was ready to retry, to take the risk of losing you again, and... Look, life is just unpredictable. You can't promise me that you'll never leave me again because no one can know what happens next. I hope you won't, of course, but... But I'm tired of thinking, of holding myself back, of... Everything. I hope but I don't know if we'll be together in a five or a ten years time, but the only thing I know right know is that I love you so much and I want to be with you. And making love to you last night made it clear. I missed you like hell, so... Yeah. I guess I'm ready. And I don't want promises or anything, I... I just want you."

Hanna was crying by now. And Caleb had tears at the corner of his eyes as well. They both had waited that moment for months.

"Come here..." Caleb whispered quietly, motioning a smile as a tear slowly streamed down his cheek.

He spreaded his arms and Hanna threw herself into them, crying hard. Caleb buried his face through her hair and sobbed as well. They couldn't do anything but cry in that moment, but their tears were of happiness.

Of _love_.

"I love you... I-I'm so sorry, Hanna..." Caleb stuttered, holding her tighter.

"It's okay now..." Hanna mumbled, her voice muffled against his now soaked shirt.

Then, Caleb slightly pulled away and lifted Hanna's chin. He wiped her tears with his thumbs and then placed his forehead against hers. For a long time, they just stayed with closed eyes, breathing deeply in and out with their forehead pressed against each other, in silence. They just need to calm down, to feel each other's presence, to realize that they were finally making up for everything that had happened in the last few weeks. After a while, Caleb rubbed the tip if his nose against hers and opened his eyes, catching her smiling. He placed a strand of her hair behind her left ear and smiled back, as Hanna finally opened her eyes too.

"Maybe... Maybe you're right, I can't promise you anything. But I can tell you that I love you and I don't want to lose you, never again." he whispered.

"Me neither. And... I love you too." she whispered back.

"God, you're beautiful..." he smiled.

Hanna giggled and then took his face in both her hands.

"Kiss me, you idiot." she ordered then, smirking.

Caleb didn't need to hear that a second time. He pulled her on his lap and pressed his lips to hers, at first gently and slowly, but then he felt her tongue enter in his mouth and touch his, so he just lost it, totally. Caleb pushed her closer resting his hands on her hips, as Hanna straddled him on the couch and tangled one of her hand in his hair, while using the other to move his face onto the kiss. After a while, they had to pull away to breath. Hanna smiled at him and fell back on the couch next to him, placing her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her. They cuddled in silence, just wanting to enjoy each other's presence.

"You're not gonna eat that?" Hanna asked out of the blue, pointing at the sandwich she had made for him.

"I am. But right now I just need to cuddle with my girl." Caleb replied.

"Your girl?" she smiled.

"Well, if you prefer girlfriend..." he teased.

Hanna giggled against his neck.

"I'm so happy you're here." she added then.

"I'm happy to be here with you."

"So, now that we're official... I was thinking to ask my mom if you can stay in the guest room until you can buy your new apartment..."

Caleb looked down at her.

"Ugh... Your mom should hate me. I'm occasionally staying in her house like a tramp... I don't know if I can disturb her once again like this, Han..." he murmured.

"Caleb, my mom loves you. Well, last year when we just got together things were different than now, she didn't know you at all, and you looked kinda sketchy, yeah, and she walked on you and her dear only daughter making out all around the house, so she just kicked your ass off here, but... Then she let you stay, remember?"

"Yeah, and then I screwed everything up again when we broke up because I worked for Jenna Marshall..."

"Yeah, okay, but... Look, she has always supported you, even after that. And that's because she knows that you make me really happy. Caleb, you're home here. And if I didn't tell her that you're staying here is just because I was with Travis when we agreed on this. I can even tell her now, but it wouldn't make much sense, right? We could just tell her that things between us have come back the way they were and that now you need a place for a little while. She won't be against this, trust me. You gave all that you had to pull her out of jail, you even wanted to sell your car to pay her bail, we had plenty dinners just the three of us sitting at the kitchen table watching those stupid TV shows which my mom loves laughing like stupid kids... Do I have to add something more? She simply adores you. You're like the male son she never had. You know, she will just say that it's okay as long as you and I won't do funny business, but she's always out for work and plus we know a lot of ways to break the rule, right?"

Caleb laughed at that.

"Well... I guess I'd feel better to stay here while she's aware of that, yeah. And I also think the bed in the guest room is way more comfortable than _my_ couch." he added then with a small smile, realizing Hanna was right.

"Exactly."

"But it will be just for a few weeks. I need a place on my own, and I don't want to take advantage of you and Ashley. As soon as I can move in my new place, I will, I promise."

"Yeah, don't worry. I got it."

"Okay." Caleb sighed, nuzzling his nose through her hair.

"Okay." Hanna repeated, snuggling closer to him.

"Thank you."

"Stop saying that. I love you, Caleb. This is the least I can do for you."

"Whatever. I love you too."

* * *

**A/N: Hey guys! Haleb finally (and officially) made up, yay! Hope I didn't exaggerate with the cheesiness :P So, just a couple of things to clarify: 1) In this story Zack is not the creepy perv who is on the show, he never hit on Hanna or anything since my fic starts right after 5x05. You guys see him just as the Brew's owner who's dating Aria's mom, that's it. And now he's giving Caleb a job so..yeah ;) 2) If you want to find out what exactly Caleb and Ali had told each other just wait till the next chapter, okay? I didn't forget about that, I just wanted to leave it like a cliff :P As always, thank you guys so much for all your reviews... I really really appreciate the words you tell me and the fact that you spend a little time to write me your thoughts, seriously :) so, if you want, review again... We're getting closer to the end ;) Have a nice week everyone! Let's hope that Tuesday's PLL ep will give us some good Haleb :D Love you all! xx -Atramea.**


	13. Chapter 13

Caleb came back home to Hanna the next day, after dinner time.

Ashley had accepted to make him stay in the guest room until he could find a place. She was happy to hear that her daughter was back with him. As Hanna had said, she liked Caleb and, most of all, she trusted him.

Caleb had just finished his first day of work at the Brew and now he was entering from the back door in Hanna's house. As Hanna heard the 'click' of the door, she jumped off the couch and met him halfway.

"Hey." he smiled, kissing her quickly.

"Hey! So? How did it go?" she asked excitedly.

"Good, I guess. It was weird at first, giving coffee at all of those people who I kinda know, and seeing them looking at me being like 'What the hell are you doing here?', but... It's not the first time I work in a coffee shop, so I managed to make myself comfortable with all of that." he shrugged.

"I should have stopped there today. It would have been cool seeing you behind the counter ready to give me coffee." she chuckled.

Caleb rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. Can I make a sandwich?" he asked then.

"You're home here, do whatever you want."

Caleb smiled at her and pressed another soft kiss on her lips before moving to the kitchen, and Hanna followed him, sitting on one of the barstools.

"Where's your mom?" he asked, rummaging into the fridge.

"She went out with Ted and some other people of the church."

"She's been really religious lately." Caleb smirked, starting to make his sandwich, sitting next to her.

"Trust me, my mom is anything but religious."

Caleb chuckled at that.

"Caleb?" she asked after a few seconds.

"Huh?" he mumbled, chewing the first bite of his sandwich.

"I need to know what Alison told you yesterday."

Caleb sighed.

"It doesn't matter, Hanna." he replied then.

"Well, it does to me. She's being a bitch with me and the girls those last few days, we kind of feel we can't trust her, and I absolutely don't want her to bother you too. She can't do it. I want to know what she told you."

"I know how to protect myself, okay? Don't worry about that. Besides, she really doesn't scare me, at all. She just said some bullshit, it's really not important."

"Just tell me, Caleb!" she raised her voice.

Caleb looked up at her. She looked totally serious and about to get angry. The kind of angry Hanna who Caleb knew very well. He took a deep breath and placed his sandwich back on the dish, turning his barstool to look into her eyes.

"Okay. She stopped me in the hallway, at school. I had just finished my exams. At first, she just asked how they went and some school stuff, like how was hard for her to be back after all of that time, and then..." he started, eventually dropping his gaze to the floor.

"Then what?"

"She just brought up your name and then she started telling me things happened when you were... Um..."

"Fat?" she finished for him.

"C'mon, Han you weren't fat!"

"I was. You can't know!"

Caleb sighed.

"She told me you kissed Mike Montgomery and that it was your first kiss, she told me about your eating disorder and a lot of things more, but I already knew all of them. She was probably hoping I didn't, but instead I did. Maybe she wanted us to fight, I don't know. I just told her to mind her own business and then I was about to leave, but... She asked me something." he continued.

Hanna fought hard not to cry. Coming back to those days was always hard to her. And Caleb knew that, which was probably why he didn't want to tell her what Ali told him.

"What was that?" she managed to ask.

"She asked me if I was proud of you. She used other words, but—"

"Tell me what she said exactly!" Hanna cut him off.

Caleb sighed and waited a few seconds before replying.

"'Are you proud of a person who used to eat eight cupcakes a day, be fat, make out with random losers and threw up in public toilets?' That's what she said."

Hanna let a few tears stream down her cheeks. Caleb reached out and wiped them away.

"Hey, don't cry. She doesn't deserve your tears, Han. Of course I'm proud of you, and I told her." he whispered gently.

"Well, she might have said bad words, but it's all true. She's right, you have no reason to be proud of me."

Caleb shook his head quickly and grabbed both of her hands in his.

"No, no, no. Don't do this. Don't let her words hurt you, Han. Don't let her break you down. Please. Look, I didn't want to tell you what she said because I knew you were going to feel this way, and I didn't want you to. I... I have a thousand reasons to be proud of who you are. I really don't care about what Alison thinks or says. And you shouldn't care either. Why she has to be so important in our lives? Hanna, I told you, I can't forbid you to be friends with her, but, seriously, a person like her really doesn't deserve a person like you to call 'friend'. I hate that she has such a power on you. Hanna, I'm serious, you have to stop caring so much about her thoughts, okay? She's no one. She has no right to make you suffer with just a word. Actually, nobody has. You're a wonderful person, did you hear me? I know it. I have a past way worse than yours, _Alison_ has a past way worse than yours. She should be ashamed of what she did, not you. She should be the one not to have reasons to be proud of herself. Not you, Hanna. You gave me a home, twice. You forgave me, twice. You taught me what love is. You _saved_ me. And... I really don't know what I did to deserve you, because you're the best thing that ever happened to me. I'm so lucky to have you in my life." he gently told her.

Hanna looked down and took a few deep breaths, as Caleb traced random patterns with his thumbs over the back of her hands.

"Okay, calm down now. Breathe. I'm here..." he whispered.

It took a few minutes, but then Hanna reached out and hugged Caleb. She was still weakly crying, but she seemed calmer than before. He hugged her back, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist and placing his chin on top of her head.

"It's okay, princess... I know who you are and I love you for exactly who you are..." he whispered again, before kissing a random spot through her hair, inhaling her shampoo.

That earned a smile from Hanna's lips, even though Caleb couldn't see it.

"What about we go for a walk?" he suggested when he felt Hanna relaxed enough.

She slowly pulled away from the hug and looked up at him, this time clearly showing her bright smile.

"I'd love to." she replied.

"Good. Put a jacket on, I don't want you to be cold."

"Okay."

* * *

"So... Where are we going?" Hanna asked, walking by Caleb's side.

"We're almost there." he replied, squeezing her hand while walking.

After a few minutes, Hanna realized where Caleb had taken her and furrowed her eyebrows at him.

"We're at school? What the hell?" she snapped confused.

Caleb let out a slight chuckle.

"Look, I would have really liked to take you out for a fancy dinner, but you know that at the moment I'm saving money for an apartment..." he said then.

"Okay, but... What are we gonna do here?"

"Just trust me." he replied simply.

Hanna smiled and nodded, as Caleb approached the building. He started opened the locked door with a strange item. Hanna could only figure it was made of steel.

"Isn't there an alarm or something?" Hanna asked, nervously looking around herself.

"I lived here. I know how to not be noticed. It's okay, just relax."

And with that, the door opened and Caleb smirked at her.

"After you." he announced, inviting her inside.

Hanna entered and waited for Caleb to join her. Then, he closed the door behind him and took her hand.

"Let's go." he said, rushing through the hallway.

They made their way to the pool. Hanna felt surprised, but even more when Caleb stripped down everything he had on until he was clad only in his boxers.

"W-what are you doing?" she stuttered, confused.

"What do you think I'm doing?"

"Are you really gonna jump in?"

"Of course I am. And you are too." he raised his eyebrows at her.

"What? Absolutely not."

Caleb reached out and closed an hand around her wrist, pulling her close to him and kissing her lips. As soon as she started kissing back, he pulled away and backed toward the pool.

"Please?" he whispered before jumping in the pool.

Hanna looked around herself again, as to make sure no one was going to 'join' them. Then, she finally decided to strip in only her underwear and bra. Caleb riemerged from the pool and gave her an approval look along with a smirk, roaming an hand through his wet hair.

"It's not cold, I promise... Come on." he said then, nodding his head.

Hanna smiled.

"You could tell me to take the swimsuit with me, though..." she joked.

Then she finally decided to jump in the pool with him. Screw the flawless make up, screw the perfect fixed hair, screw everything. Caleb immediately pulled her close to him and kissed her passionately in the middle of the pool, as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

"Why did you take me here?" Hanna asked when they pulled away for air.

"Well... When I lived here in school I used to come to this pool to swim when I was nervous. It helped me to calm down, sort of a outburst, you know. I hope it can have the same effect on you. Besides, I wanted to do something crazy with you."

Hanna smiled at him and nodded.

"I'm sorry for earlier..." she whispered then, tightening her grip around his neck.

"What do you mean?" he asked, gently moving a few strands of her wet hair away from her forehead.

"I yelled at you with no reason. And you were absolutely right. I'm sorry if I acted that way, it's just that..."

Caleb interrupted her.

"It's okay, princess. You don't have to be sorry. Let's just not talk about it anymore, okay? We're here to relax, and that's what we're going to do."

Hanna made a small smile and pecked Caleb on the lips before distangle herself from his arms to go underwater. He leaned by the pool wall and watched Hanna Marin, the queen of fashion, getting herself wet and swim in the school pool with Caleb Rivers, the hacker, in a late afternoon.

He smiled. Hanna Marin was so much more than the queen of fashion and high heels or the young girl who used to obey to everything Alison DiLaurentis told her just because of her insecurities. He knew it. And he loved her.

* * *

**A/N: Hi guys :) So you finally know what happened with Ali and Caleb. I think that Hanna's insecurities are a little neglected on the show, especially since Ali's return, so I tried to focus on that here. Hope you enjoyed it, let me know! I just wanted Caleb to comfort her because I totally think that's something he would do, even though the impressive lack of Haleb in this part of the season :( thank you all for the reviews by the way! You guys rock ;) So, I wanted to ask you if there's something that you want to see next in this story, since it's coming to an end. Feel free to write it in a review so I can try to write the perfect ending for everyone of you who followed this story ;) So... I'll be waiting for your suggestions :D Then, when I'll finish my current stories, I'm gonna start publishing the sequel of "The Mall", since I already have the first few chapters ready and which I'm excited for y'all to read :) Just be a little patient! Also, I have some one-shots in store for you guys, obviously all Haleb. Thanks for reading :) Have a nice day! xx -Atramea.**


	14. Chapter 14

**_Epilogue_**

Hanna slowly lifted her eyelids. She used a little to realize anything. But soon she saw _him_. And her life immediately seemed perfect.

She had her head resting on his chest, and his arm was protectively keeping her close to him, lazily resting on her lower back. He was still sleeping, disheveled and relaxed. He looked so cute.

And then she looked at her own hand gently placed over the blanket right above his abdomen. The diamond she had there was sparkling because of the morning light coming from outside.

Yeah, her life was perfect.

Caleb had taken a nice apartment in Rosewood with a little help from his mom and the money earned from his job at the Brew. However, he stayed there just a couple of months before he had to leave for college. And now they both were at their last year at the NYU. They had been living together since the first year. The boyfriend of Caleb's mom had this little old house in New York not too far from the University, and Hanna and Caleb had accepted to take it for their college period.

Caleb had proposed to Hanna just two weeks earlier, in a simple but romantic way.

Just like him. A simple and romantic guy.

They were having dinner on their balcony because it was a beautiful night, and when they had finished eating he had offered himself to take their dishes inside. He had returned grinning, and before Hanna had the time to ask him why he had this huge and sly smile on his face, he was already kneeling in front of her.

Obviously, she had said yes.

However, they had agreed to wait until graduation, but Caleb had told her he just had to propose. He wanted to, he couldn't wait any longer. Because living together —even if technically that was the third time they lived in the same house, but now was clearly different— had made him realize how badly he wanted to spend the rest of the life with her. She was her savior, her angel, the person who had done the most for him in his whole life. She just was the love of her life and he wanted her with him as long as his heart would beat.

It was a Sunday, so they could just lie in bed all day long, as they liked. No classes or anything else... Sunday was for cuddling. They could actually stay under the blankets relaxing and cuddling for hours and hours, it wasn't like they got bored or anything.

Hanna came even closer to Caleb and buried her face into the crook of his neck. His skin had this fresh smell which had such a soothing effect on her. And the truth was that in that moment she really needed to be calmed down... More specifically, that storm into her stomach needed to be calmed down. Unfortunately, though, neither Caleb's scent could do that. Hanna suddenly sat up and then threw the covers of her side of the bed away, running to the bathroom with an hand pressed against her own mouth. She reached the toilet bowl just in time, kneeling down and throwing up.

"Shit." she growled when she had finally given away all she had to give away.

"Hanna? What are you doing?" Caleb's voice came from behind her.

She turned her head slightly to look at him before standing up and flushing the toilet. He had probably woken up by the noises coming from the bathroom.

"What do you think I'm doing?" she replied sarcastically, walking to the sink.

He came by her side and grabbed her wrist to make her turn around and make eye-contact with her. He looked serious and concerned.

"Please tell me you didn't force yourself." he said, almost in a whisper.

Hanna sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Caleb, you know that I would never do that again." she snorted as she put some toothpaste on her pink toothbrush.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry... Are you okay?" he asked, moving behind her and kissing her shoulder.

"Yes... It's probably just the Japanese takeaway we had last night, don't worry."

Caleb had remained silent with his chin on her shoulder and his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Caleb? Could you please let me brush my teeth?" Hanna asked then, raising an eyebrow toward Caleb's reflection in the mirror.

He didn't move or anything.

"Caleb?" she repeated.

He finally lifted his gaze and looked into her eyes through the mirror.

"Are you sure it's because of the Japanese?" he asked softly.

Hanna felt lost for a moment.

"Well, I can't be sure but... I mean, it's possible. That sushi had something that... I don't know, it was weird." she mumbled.

Caleb pulled away and crossed his arms over his chest as she started brushing her teeth.

"What about your period?" he asked suddenly.

Hanna glanced at him through the mirror after spitting in the sink.

"My period?" she echoed.

"Your period. Are you late, maybe?"

Realization grew into Hanna. She parted her lips slightly, and stared at Caleb, this time turning around and meeting his eyes.

"Are you saying...?" Hanna murmured, unable to continue.

"Look, I'm not saying anything. I'm just... _Thinking_." he shrugged, looking rather nervous.

Hanna took a deep breath and washed her mouth, as Caleb sat on the edge of the bathtub. When she was done, she turned around, leaning by the sink.

"Actually, I'm five days late." she mumbled.

Caleb lifted his head and widened his eyes at her.

"Are-are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes, but I thought it was just because of the stress from college... Sometimes happens... It was just a few days. You know, this semester has been hard and everything, so... I didn't think about... _That_."

Caleb didn't know how he was feeling at the simple thought of a baby. He rubbed his forehead and then, after taking a deep breath, stood up again and walked over to Hanna, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Okay. You know what we're gonna do now? We're gonna take a breath and not jump into conclusions. It could be just a coincidence. Maybe we should just wait a few days and see—" he tried to tell her gently, but she cut him off abruptly.

"No, we won't wait. I need to know now."

She escaped from his gentle grasp and walked back to the bedroom, putting some clothes on the underwear and bra she had already on. He joined her immediately.

"Han, what do you want to do?" he asked.

"Buy a pregnancy test and then take a pregnancy test. And you need to put some clothes on as well since you're coming to the drugstore with me." she muttered, slipping into a pair of jeans.

Caleb sighed but decided not to say anything. Hanna looked rather nervous and he knew better than anyone that it was better not to tell her anything when she was that way. He started getting dressed as well, and ten minutes later they were in Caleb's car heading to the drugstore.

* * *

The ride was totally silent.

He glanced at her a couple of times from his driver seat but she just looked outside of her window.

"Hanna..." he whispered when he had to stop at a traffic light.

"Please don't say anything." she replied sharply.

He sighed deeply.

"I just want to—" he tried again, but she cut him off.

"Go. It's green now."

He sighed again and pressed his foot on the accelerator, speeding down the road. She was still watching outside of her window. She wasn't mad at him or bothered, she was just too tense to talk or do anything at the moment. She had never thought —at least not yet— about having a baby, and now the possibility totally caught her off guard. Actually, she wanted to get pregnant at the right time, after the wedding and everything. But if she really was pregnant now, her plans were screwed, and she didn't feel ready to be a mom yet.

Caleb parked in front of the drugstore and turned to her again.

"We go together? Or... Do you want me to wait here? Or maybe do you want me to go while you wait here?" he asked uncertainly.

Hanna finally turned around to face him.

"Together." she replied softly.

He nodded and the pair got out of the car.

* * *

After buying five different pregnancy tests, they returned home. Once again the ride was silent, and Caleb this time he preferred not to say anything. When they got inside their house, Hanna placed the bag on the table and took all the five tests still inside of their boxes before heading to the bathroom, quickly. Caleb waited outside, sitting on the bed still unmade from the morning. He roamed an hand through his hair and looked down at his shoes. After a couple of minutes, Hanna opened the door and crossed Caleb's gaze.

"It will take five minutes, I think." she murmured.

He looked over her shoulder and saw all the five sticks placed on the bathroom counter. He nodded slowly and returned to look into her eyes. He saw them a little watery and puffy and he understood she was about to cry. He raised his eyebrows and extended an arm toward her.

"Hey... Come here." he whispered gently.

A tear fell from her eye and she quickly wiped it before reaching out for Caleb's arm. This time she didn't reject him. She needed him. She held his hand and then he gently dragged her toward him and he made her sit on his lap. He circled her waist and looked up at her.

"Hanna, don't worry. It's gonna be okay." he whispered.

"What do you mean by 'it's gonna be okay'?" she sniffed.

He shrugged slightly.

"That it's okay whether you're pregnant or not. I'll still be here with you." he told her then.

"But... Do you think we're ready for a baby? Because I think I'm not..."

He smiled at her and wiped another tear fallen from her eyes.

"I think no one is ever ready to become a parent. But, I mean... We're getting married, we love each other and we're not sixteen anymore... I don't see why we should worry, after all." he replied.

Hanna took a deep breath and looked down, not replying. Caleb put his head on her chest and closed his eyes, listening to her soft heartbeat.

"Would you rather them to be positive or negative?" she whispered suddenly, resting her head on his, still placed against her chest.

"Well... I'll be fine with it either way. Because if they're positive, then I'm gonna become soon the dad of your child. And if they're negative, it means that I'm still gonna become the dad of your child, just later. Hanna, what I'm trying to say is that I want to have children with you, no matter when. If it's now, then I'll be ready. If it's not now, then it will happen in a few months, or years or whatever, and I'll always be ready. But I want that to happen, sooner or later. You're my life. I love you, and that's all that matters." he replied softly.

Hanna smiled and linked her arms behind his neck, hugging him. She ran her fingers through his short hair as she waited for the alarm of her mobile to ring, which would mean that the result of the test were ready.

"I love you too." she added simply.

They stayed that way until the alarm rang. Then, Hanna broke their hug and stretched an hand toward the nightstand, from where she took the mobile and turned off the alarm.

"Time's up." she murmured.

"Okay. But there's no rush. Let's check the sticks just when we feel ready, okay?" he whispered to her, playing with a strand of her hair.

Hanna nodded briefly before resting her forehead against his. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply in and out.

"I'm scared..." she confessed, finally opening her eyes again.

Caleb stroked her cheeks and rubbed the tip of his nose against hers.

"There's no reason to be scared, babe. I'm right here with you, okay?" he whispered.

"Okay... But what are we gonna do if I'm pregnant?"

Caleb laughed slightly.

"We're still gonna do what we had decided to do. Once college is over, we'll come back to Rosewood and we'll move into the apartment I bought for us before coming to New York." he replied then.

"I don't know if I want to go back to Rosewood if I'm pregnant."

Caleb bit his lower lip.

"Hanna... It's safe now. –A's not coming back. Never again. It's over." he reassured her.

"Yeah, but... What about Ali? If I'm pregnant, I'm going to be fat again, and—"

"Hanna... Stop. You won't be fat. You will be _pregnant_. It's different. And I thought Ali was not a problem anymore. You guys have both grown up now. That was the past, right? You know I still don't really like her, but I think that after all that she's been through, and she's been through a lot with you as well, she wouldn't try to hurt you again. Anyway, if she really would, I won't let her or anyone do anything bad to you or to... The baby." he cut her off.

Hanna couldn't help but smile at his last word. The _baby_.

"Thank you." she murmured.

He smiled and gave her a sweet kiss on the lips.

"You don't need to thank me." he added then.

Hanna rested her forehead against his once again.

"Would _you_ rather them to be positive or negative?" Caleb asked her the same question she had made him a little earlier.

"I don't know, honestly. I think I will understand the moment I look at the sticks." she replied sincerely.

He nodded.

"Will you look at them with me?" she asked softly.

"Of course."

Hanna took a deep breath before distangling herself from Caleb's arms and getting up from his lap, grabbing his hand and walking with him to the bathroom. She looked at the sticks from the doorway and turned around to face Caleb.

"Are you ready?" he whispered to her.

Hanna sighed and shifted uncomfortably on her position. Then, Caleb leaned in and cupped her face, crashing his lips to hers with decision. Hanna was caught off guard, and she almost lost her balance as he did so. But then she got relaxed and kissed back, closing her eyes and cupping his face as well. They pulled away for air a while later, and he smiled at her his tipical bright soothing smile.

"What about now? You ready?" he asked again, rubbing his thumb over her chin and lower lip.

This time, she smiled back and nodded.

"Let's do this." she added.

They took the few steps that were parting them from the bathroom counter hand in hand, then they took a deep breath at the same time before Hanna held up the first stick.

_A plus sign._

She swallowed and put it back on the counter, then she held up the second one.

_A plus sign._

She put it back down and bit her lip as she took the third stick in her hand and held it up as well.

_A plus sign._

Caleb squeezed her hand lightly as she put the third stick back on the counter too, grabbing the fourth and holding it up.

_A plus sign._

She stopped for a moment before placing it back down and picking up the fifth and last stick.

_A plus sign. _And on this, there was also a smiley emoticon and the word 'pregnant' underneath. It was the most expensive one. On the box there was written it was also the most accurate... _Whatever_.

Hanna didn't put the last stick down. She kept it in her hand and turned to Caleb, without letting go of his hand. He had his lips parted, but their corners were slightly arched upwards. It was like he was holding back a smile, probably waiting for her reaction.

"I'm pregnant." she mumbled.

Caleb, then, let the smile cross his whole face and raised his eyebrows. His eyes had this weird sparkle as he nodded.

"I'm pregnant..." Hanna repeated, looking down at the last stick once again.

The stick then fell to the ground as Hanna started laughing almost exaggeratedly. Caleb started laughing with her and circled her waist with his arms, picking her up and then spinning her around as she linked her arms behind his neck.

"Yes, you are!" he exclaimed, hugging her tightly.

And then, suddenly, Hanna's laughs became cries. She started crying, and Caleb immediately felt her sob, so he stopped spinning around and placed her back on her feet.

"Hey, hey, hey... What's wrong now?" he asked concerned.

Hanna shook her head and covered her face with her hands.

"I-I don't k-know, I... I just don't k-know, C-Caleb..." she sobbed.

He took her hands in his and moved them away from her face, placing his forehead against hers.

"It's okay, princess. It's okay. We're going to have a baby and that's the best thing that could happen to us. We're in this together, as always. We'll be fine." he whispered as gently as possible.

She nodded and a little smile appeared back on her face.

"Right. I just... I don't know, it feels weird, and... Oh my God, we're going to have a baby!" she exclaimed.

Caleb laughed and hugged her tightly once again, kissing the top of her head repeatedly.

"But, Caleb, you could've waited until the wedding before knocking me up!" she mumbled against his shirt.

Caleb pulled away and smirked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Oh, so now that's my fault? This happened just because of me, right? I did it all by myself?" he chuckled.

Hanna smiled and shook her head, resting her head against his chest and looping her arms around his waist.

"You've always known." she said softly.

Caleb rubbed the tip of his nose over the top of her head, furrowing his eyebrows.

"What?" he asked then.

"I mean... When you wanted to buy an apartment in Rosewood and you started working at the Brew to earn enough, you... You told me it could be our apartment. Mine and yours. But now I think that you already knew that it wasn't going to be just mine and yours, but... Also _someone else's_."

Caleb smiled.

"Yeah, you're right. I probably knew." he whispered.

"And I even thought it was a little rash of you, because it was our senior year and we were about to leave for college... Instead, look at us now. When college is over, we will be able to go back to Rosewood and to have an house for... The _three_ of us. Thanks to you."

"I knew that despite everything bad that happened, you would want to go back there when you would graduate. That's your home, Hanna. Rosewood will always be your home. And we're going to live there with our family."

Hanna smiled and pulled away enough to be able to look up at him.

"Our family as in mine and yours?" she asked.

He nodded.

"Right. Mine and yours." he replied smiling as well.

Then, he moved an hand from her back to rest it against her flat belly. Hanna's smile grew at that.

"We're a family now... And here's my little princess." he smiled.

"How do you know that's a girl?" Hanna asked, placing her hand over his, still resting against her stomach.

"I just already know. But, one thing... I won't let her hide any bad guy in her basement when she's gonna be sixteen."

Hanna laughed.

"Well... I'll let her if it'll be a boy who loves her like you love me." she replied then.

He smiled widely before kissing her, merging his lips with hers.

"Can we cuddle all day now?" Hanna asked when they pulled away.

Caleb chuckled and picked her up bridal style.

"Of course we can." he grinned.

He carried her to their king-size bed, lying her on the mattress before climbing next to her. They quickly took their shoes off and then Hanna threw herself into Caleb's strong arms. He hugged her tightly, rubbing his hand gently up and down her back.

"I love you so much..." she whispered into his ear.

"I love you too..." he whispered back.

Hanna pulled away a little and touched his face. She stroked her fingertips over his forehead, his cheeks, his chin, his jawline, as he kept rubbing her back.

"I want her or him to look like you." she told him.

Caleb smiled.

"It's a girl, Han. And she'll be as beautiful as you." he replied.

"Well, then... She'll be lucky to have you as her daddy."

When Caleb heard the word '_daddy_' his eyes sparkled, and he had to swallow a lump forming in his throat.

"And you as her mommy." he whispered, but his voice betrayed him, cracking because of the emotion.

Hanna smiled seeing how emotional he looked and kissed his lips. He hugged her again after that and they both stayed like that, silently crying of happiness in each other's arms.

Hanna closed her eyes and once again found herself soothed by Caleb's smell and the warmth of his arms.

Yeah, her life was _definitely_ perfect now.

* * *

**A/N: So this is another story of mine coming to an end *sigh* But honestly, I'm pretty proud of the way it came out :) Now I know that this epilogue could sound a little random and detached from the rest of the story, but I think that the storyline already ended with the previous chapter. Here I just wanted to go a little further into Hanna and Caleb's future, and then I wanted to mention the apartment that he bought in Rosewood before leaving for New York to college. I hope you guys didn't dislike it :) I also hope it wasn't too cheesy! :D Now, thank you everyone for the support showed me for this story... I enjoyed writing it a lot and your reviews definitely gave me the inspiration to go on. Also, I'm sorry if you all had to wait this much to get the epilogue, but I used a little to decide how to end it and college kept me busy. But a Haleb baby is always a nice way to end a fanfic, isn't it? :) Thank you guys once again, seriously! I hope you keep following me into my new projects :) Check out "I Won't Let This Plane Go Down", sequel of "The Mall", and stay tuned because I'm about to start publishing my new Haleb story *yep* :D It's gonna be an AU rated M, but something a little different from the usual ;) I just tell you that Caleb will be a dentist and Hanna his secretary ;) Sooo... That's all :) Let me know what you guys think of this epilogue, make sure to review! Thank you, thank you, thank you! It's been a pleasure as usual :) Until next time - soon ;) Love! xx -Atramea.**


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